Texas

2024 Voting Information and Resources for Disabled Voters

Email organizing@newdisabledsouth.org to request this page in document format.

Have questions about voting, need assistance or want to report any barriers you ran into registering or voting? 

Call or text 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683)

ASL Hotline: 301-818-VOTE (301-818-8683)

The deadline to register to vote in the 2024 General Election has passed. 

  • Voting in person

    • Monday, October 21 to Friday, November 1: Early in person voting at any polling place in the county where you’re registered. Find your early voting location in the voter portal starting October 19th or by calling your county elections office

    • Tuesday, November 5: Election Day! You can vote from 7am to 7pm. 

      • If your county has “Vote Centers” you can vote at any location in your county on Election Day

      • If your county does not, you can only vote at the polling place assigned to you

    • Make your plan to vote before Election Day: 

      • Find your polling place (will be available there November 3rd) or call your County Elections Office

      • You must have an accepted photo ID to vote. Have questions about Voter ID? Need help getting a Voter ID or want to know if you can still vote if you don't have one? Call or text VoteRiders at 866-432-8683

      • Decide how you’re going to get to and from your polling place. Arrange your transportation ahead of time, don’t wait until the day you want to vote! 

      • Get your friends, family or neighbors to go vote with you

      • Find out what will be on your ballot

        • by calling your County Voter Registration Officials or by visiting Ballotpedia’s Sample Ballot Lookup

        • There may be ballot measures, local offices, state offices and federal offices on your ballot. 

        • A ballot measure is a law, issue, or question that you can vote on. They can include important questions about supporting your community & keeping it safe. 

        • State level politicians shape policies & make decisions about programs like Medicaid, waivers, healthcare, affordable housing, schools & more!

        • Local politicians decide things like where or how much public transportation there is, access to voting and how smooth or clean our streets are. 

      • Research the candidates and issues before you vote: 

  • Need a ride to the polls? 

    • Download Disability Rights Texas’ Find a Ride Guide

      • If you aren’t able to access this guide, get help finding a ride by calling DRTX’s Voting Rights Hotline at 1-888-796-VOTE (8683) or emailing vote@DRTX.org 

    • For North Texas only: DART, Trinity Metro & DCTA are set to provide free transportation to polling locations.

  • Voting by mail/absentee

    • Requesting your ballot (do it ASAP if you’re voting by mail):

      • If you have a disability, are 65 or older or will be away from home on Election Day, you can vote by mail in Texas. 

      • Friday, October 25: deadline for your request to vote by absentee ballot to be received. 

    • Returning your ballot:

      • If you are returning your ballot by mail:

        • It must be postmarked by 7pm on Tuesday, November 5 and it must be received by Wednesday, November 6 by 5pm.

      • If you are hand delivering your ballot: 

        • It must be received by 7pm on Election Day, Tuesday, November 5th. 

  • Assistance and accommodations for voters with disabilities in Texas: 

    • In person voting: 

  • If you need help filling out your ballot you are allowed to have someone of your choice help you. You can bring someone you know or ask for help from a poll worker at the polling place. Your boss cannot help you vote.

  • You can receive assistance if you cannot read or write, or if you have a physical disability that prevents you from reading or marking your ballot. You do not have to provide proof of your disability. 

  • If you ask workers at your polling place for assistance, poll watchers and/or state and federal election inspectors who are already at that polling place may watch the voting process to be sure your ballot is marked as you have requested. 

  • Every polling place is required to have at least one accessible voting machine (sometimes called a ballot marking device). Every voter is allowed to use this machine. The poll workers can teach you how to use it.

    • Ways an accessible voting machine can help you vote: 

      • You can use a touch screen or tactile keypad to click through each question and mark your choices. Some accessible machines also allow you to plug in a sip-and-puff device. 

      • You can make the font bigger and change the colors to make the ballot easier to read. 

      • The voting machine also has headphones. The machine can read your ballot out loud to you, so you can listen to the questions.

      • You can go back through your ballot choices and make sure you selected the right ones before printing your ballot and casting your vote. 

  • If your polling place is inaccessible, Texas allows voters to vote outside of their polling place. This is called curbside voting. Reach out to your local election office to find out more about curbside voting.

  • Voting by mail:

    • If you have a disability, are 65 years old or older, or you will be away from home on Election Day, you may vote by mail in this state. This is called absentee voting. 

    • Someone else may return your ballot for you. You must put that person’s name and address on the ballot envelope and your helper must sign the envelope. 

 Resources & additional information for disabled voters: 

  • What if I have questions about voting, need assistance or want to report any barriers I faced with voting? Call or text 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683) or call Disability Rights Texas at 1-888-796-VOTE (8683)

  • Can I vote if I have a disability? Yes! People with disabilities who are 18 or older have the right to vote. Your vote matters and is protected by law to make sure that you can vote independently, accessibly and privately. 

  • Can I vote if I have a guardian? In Texas, just having a guardian does not automatically take away your right to vote. However, sometimes a court may decide that you cannot vote. If you are not sure, you can check your guardianship order. If your guardianship order does not say anything about voting, this means you can still vote! Your right has only been taken away if your order directly says that.

  • How do I know if I can vote? Ask your guardian. If they won’t tell you, call Disability Rights Texas:

    • Headquarters/Central Texas: (512) 454-4816

    • North Texas: (214) 630-0916

    • West Texas: (806) 765-7794

    • East Texas: (713) 974-7691

    • El Paso Area: (915) 542-0585

    • South Texas: (210) 737-0499 

Other voting resources: