Dominic Anthony Walsh/Houston Public Media
Voters wait in line to cast their ballots at the Metropolitan Multi-Service Center in Houston on Nov. 4, 2025.
More than 100,000 voters have turned out to polling locations across Harris County on Tuesday. Many more were expected to cast ballots throughout Election Day to weigh in on local municipal and school board elections, statewide propositions and a Houston-based congressional seat that’s been vacant for months.
Polls opened at 7 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. There are 600 polling locations in Harris County, and voters registered in the county can cast ballots at any of those locations. Some voters also are eligible to vote by mail.
The early voting turnout in Harris County was about 8%, with more than 212,000 voters casting ballots between Oct. 20-31. That was down from the 239,000 who voted early during the last state constitutional amendment election in November 2023.
Sarah Grunau/Houston Public Media
Harris County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth speaks about voting on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025.
As of 2 p.m. Tuesday, the office of Harris County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth said another 102,000 voters had cast their ballots — with hopes to see a total Election Day turnout of about 200,000 voters.
RELATED: How to vote in the November 2025 election in Harris County
“The sheer size of Harris County is the combination of 25 states put together, and so vote centers can be anywhere from your church in your neighborhood to a community center, to an HOA facility,” Hudspeth said.
Waiting game
Elected trustees in Houston ISD do not have voting power amid ongoing intervention by the Texas Education Agency, but the candidates who win Tuesday could gain voting power before the end of their four-year terms.
The contested races on the ballot are for District 5, where Maria Benzon is facing Robbie McDonough; District 6, where incumbent Kendall Baker takes on Michael McDonough; and District 7, a race between incumbent Bridget Wade and Audrey Nath.
As those six candidates anxiously awaited results Tuesday night, two others already know their fate. Felicity Pereyra and Myrna Guidry are running unopposed for the District 1 and District 9 seats, respectively.
Bianca Seward/Houston Public Media
Campaign signs for Houston ISD trustee candidates stand outside the Metropolitan Multi-Service Center on Nov. 4, 2025.
Guidry, an incumbent, told Houston Public Media that for her Election Day is “bittersweet.”
“While I am truly grateful to be entrusted with this elected position, I am saddened by the fact that we continue to have to sit by the sidelines,” she added. “I am anxious to return to my seat on the dais as an elected HISD trustee to create policy that ensures the students are truly learning, great educators and administration are at the helm and that my community can be heard.”
Elected trustees in HISD, the largest district in the state, have no governing authority until at least June 2027. The Texas Education Agency has appointed its own board of managers as part of its takeover of HISD, which began in 2023.
School board seats in Aldine ISD, Cy-Fair ISD and Klein ISD also are up for grabs. The trustee races in Cy-Fair ISD have been especially heated as politically conservative candidates look to maintain their majority on the board.
Long-awaited opportunity
Eight months after the death of U.S. Rep. Sylvester Turner, his constituents in Houston finally have the chance to select his successor.
A special election for the right to complete Turner’s term in Texas’ 18th Congressional District is among the key races on the ballot. Sixteen candidates are vying for the seat, which has been held by a Black Democrat for more than 50 years.
Thomas Perumean/Houston Public Media
Voters wait in line to cast their ballots at the Metropolitan Multi-Service Center in Houston on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025.
Two of the congressional candidates made early appearances at the Metropolitan Multi-Service Center. Former Houston City Council member Amanda Edwards and acting Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee, the leading candidates in terms of recent polling and campaign fundraising, made pitches to voters and also addressed the significance of their race.
“We’ve been without a vote, we’ve been without a voice, we’ve been without our advocate for federal funding for far too long,” Edwards said. “And so for this district in particular, this is a very special opportunity to get their voice back.”
While the 18th Congressional District has gone without representation in Washington, Edwards said she’s made trips to the Texas Capitol in Austin to advocate for residents of the district. Menefee also described himself as an advocate for those constituents, many of whom he has served as the county attorney.
RELATED: Here is what’s on the November 2025 ballot in Harris County
The race also includes state Rep. Jolanda Jones and fellow Democrat Isaiah Martin, a former staffer for the late U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, who preceded Turner in the congressional seat. Among the Republicans on the ballot is Carmen Maria Montiel. Political independent George Edward Foreman IV, a son of the late boxing champion George Foreman, has a familiar name to Houston residents.
Fair wages and affordable health care are among the important issues to residents of the 18th District, according to Menefee.
“The number of billionaires has exploded in this country. The most wealthiest folks are paying less in taxes than they ever have in the history of this country,” he said. “What that says to me is we have a deeply embedded problem of income inequality, of wealth inequality in the country. We’re now working more for the billionaires and the ultra rich than we are for the average working Joe and Jane.”
In Harris County, ballots also include a special election for a Houston City Council seat and elections for several other local municipalities and utility districts.
Constitutional crisis?
Seventeen proposed amendments to the Texas Constitution also will be decided by voters, who are being asked to weigh in on taxation, bail practices, dementia research and the state’s water supply, among other issues.
Two voters Tuesday at the Metropolitan Multi-Service Center, located on West Gray Street in west Houston, seemed perplexed about some of the statewide constitutional amendments on the ballot, along with the number of them.
Thomas Perumean/Houston Public Media
Voters stand in line outside the Metropolitan Multi-Service Center in Houston on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025.
The 17 propositions appearing before voters across Texas are an increase from November 2023, when there were 14 constitutional amendments on the ballot.
“It doesn’t seem normal,” Houston resident Geraldo Olivo said. “It seems like a lot.”
Many of the propositions on this year’s ballot are related to taxation, including property tax exemptions. There also are measures related to disciplining state judges, funding for technical colleges, U.S. citizenship requirements for voting and parental rights.
Voting “yes” for Proposition 15 would affirm the rights and responsibilities of parents, who already have the right to care for their children.
“We are voting on whether or not parents have sovereignty over their children. Why is this necessary for a constitutional amendment?” Houston voter Feliza Bencosme said. “It’s just a very sad state of affairs that we are in.”
Olivo said he wanted to exercise his right to weigh in on the statewide propositions as well as the more local races on the ballot, and he hoped others would do the same throughout the course of the day.
“I know it’s important, so I’m here,” he said. “So I want to make sure. I want to do something.”
Houston Public Media’s Sarah Grunau, Thomas Perumean and Bianca Seward contributed to this report.