Secretary of State Jane Nelson: Texans 'make a plan to vote' in Super Tuesday primary

With the first days of early voting underway, Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson was in El Paso as part of her statewide tour to get out the vote ahead of the Super Tuesday primary on March 5.

During a news conference in front of the Enrique Moreno County Courthouse on Tuesday, Feb.20, Nelson said she was "pleased" with the number of registered voters in the state, which is approaching a record 18 million.

That number represents an increase of nearly 2 million new voters since 2020 and more than 3.5 million since Gov. Greg Abbott was first elected in 2015. El Paso has more than 503,600 registered voters, an increase of more than 33,000 since the March 2020 primary.

Those numbers stand to dramatically alter the Texas electorate, but how won't be seen until the primary.

For her part, Nelson is going all in to bring people to the polls. Her statewide tour is focused on enthusing voters and informing them about what documentation they will need to cast their ballots, as well as promoting her new voter website.

"Today is the first day of early voting for the March 5 primary election and, on such an important start, I wanted to be sure that, in this important corner of our state, voters are going to be ready," Nelson said as she stood before the Enrique Moreno County Courthouse "I have a key message for Texans, and that message is to make a plan for voting."

"As Texas Secretary of State," she added, "my goal is to make sure that every qualified Texan who wants to vote has all of the information they need to cast a ballot."

What are key dates for the March 5 primary?

While the state's election website includes all of the details Texas voters will need to cast a ballot, Nelson took the time during her stop to lay out some key dates still on the horizon for the March 5 primary and beyond.

While the last day to register to vote in the primary was Feb. 5, Nelson encouraged those who missed the deadline to register so they could participate in other elections this year, most notably the General Election on Tuesday, Nov. 5.

Other key dates include the following:

• The last day to apply for a ballot-by-mail is Feb. 23

• Early voting runs from Tuesday, Feb. 20, until Friday, March 1

• The Super Tuesday primary is on Tuesday, March 5

What documentation is needed to vote?

When casting a ballot in person, Nelson said Texas voters will need one of the following seven forms of identification:

• A Texas driver's license

• A Texas personal identification form

• A U.S. passport

• A Texas handgun license

• A military identification card

• A citizenship certificate or

• A Texas election identification certificate

Voters who do not have or cannot acquire one of these seven forms of identification can fill out a reasonable impediment declaration at the polls that will allow them to use an alternate form of identification, such as a utility bill or bank statement.

Who can vote by mail?

Nelson noted that for voters casting ballots by mail, "some things may have changed since the last time" they voted.

Texans eligible to vote by mail include voters over 65, voters who are sick or disabled, pregnant women expecting to give birth within three weeks or Election Day and voters who will be out of the county throughout the early voting session and Election Day.

Additionally, voters casting ballots by mail must include one of the following on their vote-by-mail application and when submitting their ballot:

• A Texas driver's license

• A Texas personal identification card

• An election identification card or

• The last four digits of their social security number

If a voter lacks one of these forms of identification, they must check the appropriate box on their application or carrier envelope.

"The important thing is to make a plan," Nelson said, "not only who you're going to vote for, but how you can cast your ballot, what information you will need."

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson brings voter education tour to El Paso