Harris County again sets turnout record
Each day alone would be an all-time mark, but three in a rowis ‘astounding,’ clerk says
More than 105,000 Harris County voters cast ballots Thursday, the third straight day of record-breaking early voting turnout.
The clerk’s office announced that 105,175 people went to the polls Thursday, marking the third day in a row turnout hit the six-figure mark. The county had achieved 100,000 early votes in a single day only once before 2020, on the final day of early voting in 2016.
“Each of our daily Early Voting turnout figures would on their own be an all-time record,” Clerk Christopher Hollins said on Twitter. “For it to happen 3 days in a row is astounding. Let’s keep it going.”
The tally was 128,186 on Tuesday and 114,996 Wednesday. The clerk’s office said it also has received more than 50,000 mail-in ballots, bringing the total number cast so far to 398,966, with more than two weeks of early voting remaining.
In 2016, the county tallied about 884,000 early votes and 101,000 mail ballots.
County officials are expecting a record turnout for the Nov. 3 election, buoyed by an additional 234,000 registered voters since 2016, expanded early voting hours and a tripling of early voting locations. Gov. Greg Abbott approved an additional week of early voting to give Texans plenty of opportunity to cast ballots safely during the coronavirus pandemic.
The numbers have been similarly impressive statewide. About 1.9
million Texas had cast in-person or mail ballots through the first two days of early voting, not counting Thursday. That’s the latest day for which reliable statewide data is available.
The Texas Secretary of State posts early voting totals each day; as of Thursday afternoon, the state’s website was still missing several Wednesday updates from large counties, including Harris, to reflect the most recent ballot totals.
Texas surpassed 1.1million ballots cast on the first day of early voting on Tuesday. Early voting will continue through Oct. 30 – six days longer than the usual two-week period because of the public health crisis.
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3.
The record-breaking tallies come amid multiple legal battles to expand voter access in Texas. The state is one of just five that does not allow voters to use the fear of the coronavirus as a reason to vote by mail, but all seniors ages 65 and older are automatically eligible for it.
Harris County has led the state in ballots cast, with more than 287,000 in-person and mail-in votes handed in as of Wednesday. Dallas County has recorded more than 153,000 ballots so far, followed by Tarrant with nearly 124,000, Bexar with nearly 120,000 and Travis with more than 97,000.
Hearst Newspapers calculated the most recent tallies using data from county websites, many of which report early voting information that differs slightly from the state’s numbers.