Election Day reminder: Tuesday is last to vote in Texas amendment election

From Staff Reports
·5 min read

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 7 for the Texas Constitutional Amendment Special Elections in Potter and Randall counties.

In this election, Texans will decide the fate of 14 state amendments recently sent to the ballot by lawmakers. Some of these would address issues around taxes; creating or altering funds to support higher education, water infrastructure, gas-fueled power plants, broadband infrastructure and/or state parks; impacting certain professions; and protecting farming and ranching practices.

The next Election Day in Texas is Nov. 7. Amarillo saw its latest municipal election in May of this year, as seen by this file photo.
The next Election Day in Texas is Nov. 7. Amarillo saw its latest municipal election in May of this year, as seen by this file photo.

If you have a ballot in Potter County, you'll only be voting on the state amendments. If you're in Randall County, depending on the voting precinct, your ballot may have Voter Approval Tax Rate Election (VATRE) elections. Canyon and Happy Independent School Districts (ISD) are holding these elections with a need for more state funding due to inflation and unfunded mandates due to security precautions. A VATRE is required when a district needs to exceed the maximum state allowable tax rate. However, both tax rates would be the lowest for their area in at least a decade, if not more, the districts noted.

With a VATRE proposed tax rate of 96 cents per $100 of property valuation, Canyon ISD would receive more than $5 million in additional state funding. Happy ISD has a proposed ad valorem tax rate on the ballot for its voters of $0.8173 per $100 of property value, which would increase maintenance and operations revenue by $16,841.

Election Day voting locations

POTTER COUNTY

Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 7 and include the following locations:

  • Bushland Fire Station #1, Truck Bays​, 17600 Indian Hill Rd., Bushland

  • Casey Carpet One, Main Entrance, 3500 I-40 W Frontage Rd.

  • Chaparral Hills Church, Sanctuary, 4000 W Cherry Ave.

  • Cornerstone Outreach, Fellowship Room, 1111 N Buchanan St.

  • Diversity Church, Main Entrance, 5631 Pavillard Dr.

  • Eastridge Lanes, Right Side, 5405 E Amarillo Blvd.

  • Highland Park Admin. Bldg., Boardroom, 15300 E Amarillo Blvd.

  • Kids, Inc., Mary E Bivins Room, 2201 SE 27th Ave.

  • NW Branch Library, Meeting Room, 6100 SW 9th Ave.

  • Pride Home Center, middle back of store, 3503 NE 24th Ave.

  • Santa Fe. Bldg., Ticket Office, 900 S Polk St.

  • Tri-State Fairgrounds, Commercial Exhibit Hall, 3301 SE 10th Ave.

  • Trinity Baptist Church, East Entrance, 1601 I-40 W

  • United Citizens Forum, Main Entrance, 903 N Hayden St.

  • Valle de Oro Fire Station #2, Truck Bay, 23801 FM 1061, Valle de Oro

RANDALL COUNTY

All vote centers will be open Election Day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 7. Election Day Vote Centers for Randall County voters include the following:

  • Crossroads Country Church, 14425 FM 1541, Amarillo

  • Journey Church, 9711 FM 2186, Amarillo

  • Comanche Trail Church of Christ, 2700 E. 34th, Amarillo

  • Arden Road Baptist, 6701 Arden Road, Amarillo

  • Randall County Justice Center, 2309 Russell Long Blvd., Canyon

  • Oasis Southwest Baptist Church, 8201 Canyon Dr., Canyon

  • Ascension Academy, 9301 Ascension Parkway, Amarillo

  • Randall County Annex, 4320 S. Western, Amarillo

  • Southwest Church of Christ, 4515 Cornell, Amarillo

  • The Summit, 2008 12th Ave., Canyon

  • Redeemer Christian Church, 3701 S. Soncy, Amarillo

  • Coulter Road Baptist Church, 4108 S. Coulter, Amarillo

  • Southwest Public Library, 6801 SW 45th Ave., Amarillo

  • Texas Panhandle War Memorial Center, 4111 S. Georgia, Amarillo

  • Freedom Fellowship Church, 55 Hunsley Rd., Canyon

What to bring to the ballot box

You can check your registration status online ahead of time www.votetexas.gov before heading to a polling site. According to the Texas Secretary of State, voters can bring one of seven approved forms of ID from the following list:

  • Texas driver's license

  • Texas election ID certificate

  • Texas personal ID card

  • Texas handgun license

  • U.S. Citizenship Certificate with photo

  • U.S. military ID Card

  • U.S. passport (book or card)

Mail-in ballot requirements

Oct. 27 was the last day voters can request a mail-in ballot. According to the Texas secretary of state, to be eligible to vote early by mail a voter must be 65 years or older by Election Day; be sick or disabled; be out of the county on election day and during the two-week early voting period; be expected to give birth within three weeks before or after election day; or be in jail but otherwise eligible. Applications to vote by mail can also be submitted by fax or email, but the county must receive a hard copy within four business days. They can also be dropped off in person.

The deadline for mail-in ballots to be returned to the county is Election Day, Nov. 7. If a ballot is postmarked by 7 p.m. locally that day, it’ll be counted if it’s received by the county by 5 p.m. Nov. 8. Absentee ballots can also be delivered to your county elections office in person with a valid form of ID while polls are open on Election Day. You’ll need to provide an ID number on both your mail-in ballot and ballot envelope, which can be your driver’s license, state ID number or the last four digits of your Social Security number. If you don’t have any of these ID numbers, you can also indicate you have not been issued that identification. Under new laws, once election officials receive your ballot, they must notify you of any errors and how to submit corrected forms by mail, in person, or through the state’s online tracking tool.

This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Vote for Texas constitutional amendments on Election Day Nov. 7