Students who will be voting far from home this November can still make their voices heard – either by changing their registration to Harris County or voting by mail with an absentee ballot.
"Students can vote either at their family residence, or they can vote using their dorm address or their school address – it is entirely up to them, whatever community they wish to have that association with is their choice," Linda Cohn with the League of Women Voters said.
Monday is the deadline to change one’s registration address as well as the deadline to register to vote on Nov. 4. Although a first-time registration must be done in person, students who are already registered in Texas can change their address online at the Texas Secretary of State’s Web site, where voters can also determine if and where they are registered to vote.
Voters may submit an absentee ballot if they will be out of their home county during early voting and on Election Day, are over 65 years of age, disabled, ill or confined to jail but still eligible to vote.
Applications for absentee ballots must be received byt Oct. 28. An application can be requested online at the Texas Secretary of State’s Web site, or voters can send an informal application including the name and address they are registered by, the address the ballot should be sent to, the voter’s signature, the date of the election and the reason they are eligible to vote by mail.
Completed ballots must be received by election officials by the close of business on Election Day, Cohn said.
"Don’t rely on the post office to stamp those pre-addressed, non postage-required cards," she said. "If it’s not stamped there’s no way to retrieve the date."
Cohn said the League has seen interest mount in elections over the past several years, and said both her organization and election officials are working diligently to make sure anyone who is eligible and wants to vote understands the process.
"We have seen in every election a tremendous amount of interest in voting," she said. "This year is the same, but more so. We’ve been to a number of college campuses. … People truly are interested in all the ins and outs and all the nooks and crannies of the election process, and they’re not shy about voicing their opinions."
Voter registration applications are available in the Dean of Students Office, the Student Information and Assistance Center and the Moody Towers and Oberholtzer service desks in the residence halls.
