If you plan to vote in the March primary election but have yet to register you have until Monday to do so.
The last day to register to vote in the March primary is Monday and although Cameron County will be closed that day for a holiday, the county’s Department of Elections and Voter Registration will be open and registering voters, said Remi Garza, administrator of the election’s department.
The office will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and will assist any potential voter or voters who may need assistance.
Garza said people planning to register to vote may also send in their application by mail as long as it is post marked by Feb. 3. They may also send in their application by fax or email as long as they take their original application to the office within four days after they faxed it or emailed it in, he said.
Garza said his department has seen an uptick in activity with people inquiring about voter registration and that there are a lot of deputy registrars available to help people register to vote.
Officials said people filling out the registration cards are encouraged to print as clearly as possible and when they are putting in their names to use their driver’s license so that the surnames will be in the right order.
Garza said people who moved around in Cameron County or have changed their name are encouraged to update their information with the election’s office as well. “We encourage you to do this too so there won’t be any confusion on election day.”
Cameron County had 212,300 registered voters, as of a recent count. Garza anticipates there will be at least 213,000 registered voters once the voting registration ends for the March primary.
Officials hope to have 220,000 registered voters by the Nov. 3 General Election.
The following requirements are needed to register to vote:
>>You are a United States citizen;
>>You are a resident of the county where you submit the application;
>>You are at least 17 years and 10 months old, and you are 18 years of age on Election Day.
>>You are not a convicted felon (you may be eligible to vote if you have completed your sentence, probation, and parole); and
>>You have not been declared by a court exercising probate jurisdiction to be either totally mentally incapacitated or partially mentally incapacitated without the right to vote.
There are several ways people can access voter registration applications. They can find the applications on the Election’s Department website, the Texas Secretary of State website or actually visit the county’s Election’s Department in person and fill out an application there. Applications accessed from the county or state website may be printed out and either taken to the Election’s Department or be mailed in.
The county’s Department of Elections and Voter Registration is located at 1050 E. Madison St.
For more information on voter registration, contact the Cameron County Voter Registration Office at (956) 544-0809.
