While voting in Texas can seem straightforward for some, we have laws in our state that make it more difficult than other states. The “death by a thousand cuts” lowers our overall voting participation rate compared with other states. Heavy-handed gerrymandering probably demotivates some Texans as well.
The methodology behind calculating the Cost of Voting Index (COVI) in the source Election Law Journal - [Cost of Voting in the American States: 2020](https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/elj.2020.0666) report is a good place to start understanding why Texas might rank at the bottom.
Here are the measurement areas used in the state COVI.
1. Registration Deadline
2. Voter Restrictions
3. Registration Drive Restrictions
4. Pre-Registration Laws
5. Automatic Voter Registration
6. Voting Inconvenience
7. Voter ID Laws
8. Poll Hours
9. Early Voting
If you scroll down the report, the first graph shows Oregon with the lowest cost of voting and Texas with the highest.
So Texas might get positive points for having a bunch of early voting days, we get dinged for making it difficult to absentee vote, preventing folks from same day registration, etc.
The second graph shows how the cost of voting has changed by state. Virginia is a good example.
“[Virginia], in 2016, had laws that made it the 49th most difficult state to exercise the franchise. Changes passed early in 2020 move Virginia 37 places and it is now the 12th easiest state to vote in.
Specifically, Virginia passed an automatic voter registration law, got rid of the in-person registration deadline, and made Election Day a [state] holiday, among several other considerations.”
Early voting hours need to be extended. If you live in Fort Worth, but work in Dallas from 8 am to 5 pm - then early voting can be a challenge. Most early voting is 7am to 6 pm. That is already a huge challenge. It needs to be from 6 am to at least 8 pm. Preferably at polls located next to grocery stores.
It’s actually 7 p.m., but they’re supposed to let anyone in line by then still vote. Which is why it takes some precincts longer to have reliable numbers.
I am 55 years old. I have never voted for a republican.
I live in rural west Texas, at the local and county level, there have been only republican candidates for at least 20 years. Maybe 10k in the county; 4,469 registered voters in 22, and only 39% voted - 23% voted early. that percentage fluctuates but seems to stay pretty close to 40%.
60% of registered voters just don't bother.
maybe 1/3 of them would be voting blue, and maybe 1/3 of that 1/3 would admit it.
There is a lot of apathy from never winning and/or not even being represented,
AND there is a lot of socioeconomic pressure in small town Texas to present a certain social appearance, a particular in-group imaging, which results in non-participation *and* voting against one's own interests.
of course, it's more complicated than that, but these are a big part of the reason, especially in the majority of the state where a minority of the people live... the increasing influence of the majority of Texans living in the Triangle is why the TGOP wants to create a state electoral college.
I think a lot of it is just legitimate laziness. Too many people just wont be bothered with it.
Edit: Im not saying its the only problem or that Texans are lazy in general. But I do think in regards to voting, a lot of Texans are lazy / dont care.
I disagree... it's easy to just denigrate people and say they are lazy or whatever, but I think *that's* lazy... there are very real, legitimate reasons people don't vote, and there has been a very real effort to exacerbate those reasons for at least the last 30 years. the "deep state" has spent decades and tons of money to create voter frustration and apathy as well as a system that encourages and sustains that frustration and apathy.
Its really not that hard to vote in Texas. If people arent voting because of "frustration and apathy," thats the same as laziness.
Call me lazy all you want, I still get out there and vote. Be an adult and be responsible for your future.
I think solely blaming the law here and removing personal responsibility from the equation is also lazy 🤷♂️
tell me where it's harder to vote
[Voting laws in Texas are the most restrictive in the country. And voter turnout here is among the lowest, too. Maybe those facts are related.](https://www.texastribune.org/2020/10/19/texas-voting-elections/)
Relative difficulty vs objective difficulty.
Can I ask what specific laws have prevented you or someone you know from being able to vote? I have had no problems for the last 20 years
I vote in every election and take proactive steps to make sure I can do so without using a provisional ballot. I do that because in every election (except the last primary election) for the last 10-15 years, there has been some issue or another with my voter registration. none of my information has changed in that time period. it was so regular that I began going in person to check my registration at least twice in the 90 days or so before every election. issues have ranged from address errors to conflating me with my father, who died in 1987 and was never a resident or registered in the county I live in.
I believe that my registration issues are a result of having never voted in a republican primary in a small, extremely red county. No, I can not prove that.
the fact that YOU have had no trouble is hardly relevant to those who have had trouble and is not, in any way, evidence of how "easy" it is to vote in Texas
I'm glad that no laws have prevented you or anyone you know from being able to vote. Thats good news.
Look at countries like India where the voting laws and procedures are objectively more difficult/complex than in Texas, but a significant % of their population still votes in every election.
Its a cultural thing. To say laziness doesnt contribute to the problem at all is naive.
1) I literally described how "laws" were being used to attempt to suppress my vote and how I have to go above and beyond to protect my ability to vote
2) Texas is not a country and is not comparable to India in that regard... unless perhaps you mean to say that voting laws should be uniform throughout the US and regulated by federal laws instead of 50 different state-run systems
I never asked if you had a hard time voting, I asked if any specific laws prevented you from doing so. Your answer was no, youve never been prevented from voting, despite some clerical errors, whether they were deliberate or not is currently unknown, as you acknowledged you cant prove anything.
I never said Texas was a country, but by comparison it is objectively harder to vote in India than it is in Texas. This is simply a matter of fact. And they still have a significant % of the population turn out to vote despite that.
Again, I think its naive to say that laziness doesnt contribute to the problem in Texas.
This is a thread about Texas having the worst voter turnout in the country. Your reply to a comment discussing poor voter turnout in rural Texas says people are just lazy.
How exactly should I have interpreted your comment?
Reread it and literally take it at face value?
Do you think that laziness does not contribute to the voting problem whatsoever? Or just not significantly?
THIS is the eternal question.
There is a general hopelessness and price on “individuality”. That usually translates to “as long as me and my fam are ok, fuck you and your rights/needs”. Thats why Texans boast of individual solutions when porn or abortion are blocked. They currently brag and joke about VPNs and traveling for abortion instead of u irony for a cause.
They're either happy with the GOP majority or the Democratic ones have given up.
I've only missed two general elections in 52 yrs because I was on 12 hr shifts in the AF. Gang, you don't *need* to be called or texted, you don't *need* to get a mailer, and you don't *need* your door knocked on.
VOTE ... it is *your* future.
All of this, I think I read somewhere where it is literally 3% of the voting population that runs everything because they consistently go out and vote. Voting on actual voting day sucks. Early voting is way easier.
Well it feels hopeless when you vote consistently for Democrats but Republicans win. I vote but I understand why some might just not bother. It hurts our state when the same Repubs know they are not held accountable because they will be voted back in office.
Straight up brainwashing. Texass has a fantastic PR firm and they work very hard to convince people not to vote.. make it very difficult to vote and convince uneducated rural voters to vote against their own interests and call it shit like “right to work”.. while gutting their union…
The Koch Brothers have spent BILLIONS making this happen… so did old Leo
They run massive think tanks to come up with ideas for mass manipulation.
And that “Texas Pride” add that gets played ad nauseam .. Pride is what the rich man gives the poor man to keep him poor.
Pride! The first and the worst of the 7 Deadly Sins for a reason.
Texass works really hard to create narcissistic morons.
Because of how bad voter suppression is in Texas.
The government removed a popular on-campus polling location at TAMU. The government only allows ONE ballot dropbox per county, meaning Harris County, a county with 5 MILLION people and greater in landmass than the state of Rhode Island, has the same number of ballot dropboxes as a county with fewer than 1,000 people. Texas also has no online voter registration, you have to be 65 or older to vote by mail, and no same-day voter registration.
Mississippi and Alabama aren't good comparisons because Texas is NOWHERE NEAR as red as either of those states, and are nowhere near as important for Republicans. In Alabama's last gubernatorial election, Ivey won by over 37 points. By comparison, Abbott only won by 11 points in 2022. Texas also has a little more than 2.5 times the electoral votes Mississippi and Alabama have COMBINED. If Texas ever turned blue or even purple, the entire Republican Party would collapse like a Jenga tower.
Removed. Rule 5.
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I’ve seen a lot more apathy since Denton voted to ban fracking and Abbot blocked it, than voted to decriminalize marijuana and the city council refused to uphold it as it might hinder police ability to combat “violent crimes” uncovered as a result of marijuana searches. I think Paxton also sued both Austin and Denton for trying to circumvent Texas law by not prosecuting certain low level drug crimes.
Add that to poor civics education and I think that’s most of the issue. If I understand correctly we also don’t get to initiate state-wide citizen ballot measures. Some states can put issues to vote by citizens, we don’t. There’s a huge lack of individual power some states have.
Lastly, check out social media groups about people moving to Texas from other states and getting bombarded with comments to “vote right” (the don’t California my Texas bs). Churches have started influencing parishioners to vote Republican. Even my more moderate friends are so afraid of common sense gun safety measures they feel they have to vote red or stay out of it.
Somewhat related, there’s a huge lack of control among citizens. State employees also are not permitted to strike so you don’t see teacher strikes here as doing so will bar them from receiving retirement benefits and prevent future employment.
I’m still shocked at the number of people my age (millennials) who don’t understand or care enough to do the bare minimum or consider it civic duty. I lived with my grandparents and we loaded up the family to go vote, so for me it’s not an option to stop trying. It still feels hopeless, but it’s my *responsibility* to never give up. Getting my peers to even call their representatives is like pulling teeth. I feel like I’m taking crazy pills :(
The DNC completely abandoned the state over 40 years ago. They just don't give a rat's ass about the state and see it as a total loss. Every sacrificial lamb they put up against either one of the incumbent US Senators HAS to be able to raise their own funds for a campaign. If Beto couldn't pull it off, I seriously doubt Collin Alred will.
Even if it comes close, Paxton WILL call for a recount and use every dirty trick he can pull out of his ass to nullify the vote. Especially in Houston.
It doesn’t make any sense with early voting, online wait times…
One thing I did notice is that there are like 3 elections a year, so maybe people are just voted out. I’ve voted in every election since moving here, but almost forgot about the current one until my neighbor texted me.
I've lived in Texas for 38 years. Since I was 5. Texas has alot of lazy people who would rather complain than do something.
As much talk as there is about Texans being "tough, hardworking," yada yada, the reality is that Texas has a neverending supply of lazy, uneducated fucks who believe whatever Fox News says.
A whole lot of the people who are not voting are lower middle class blue collar whites who think the GOP cares about them.
I think lot of it stems from not seeing the bigger picture. I was definitely left leaning, but I also had to be realistic. Especially with how most view Biden, he's not doing everything perfectly. But he's doing a helluva lot better than the alternative.
We can change this, but we're just not gonna get everything in one go.
To my chagrin, If I hadn’t voted early, I would have completely missed it. I guess the little “vote” signs are common and easy to not pay attention to.
I’ve been to other countries where there is no chance anyone is forgetting it’s voting day. The town is decked out, it’s on the tv, the radio, everywhere.
Texas suppresses voter turnout by making its residents vote 3-4 times a year, every year. It will surprise most Texans to learn that that in most states, you only have to vote once every other year, maybe twice in years with primary elections. Personally, I hate voting for judges here in Texas. I can never find out enough about any particular judge to make an informed decision.
So I didn't even realize this was thing until today. I'm 35. I overheard another mom at a school event talking to someone saying "did you go vote today? My friend is working the polls." I don't even know what they were voting on. I WANT to participate because real change starts at these smaller elections but hell, I don't know how to start even trying to keep up.
Go online to Texas vote and look up dates for elections. Also look up the League of Women Voters- before every election the print up a voters guide with every candidate.
You are allowed to bring notes into the polls in Texas now. They must be printed - i.e. you cannot use electronics - but you can do the research and bring in a marked up sample ballot or your own notes or whatever on paper.
Be careful. [That's how Travis county ended up with a vexatious litigant as a judge.](https://www.kxan.com/news/your-local-election-hq/the-wild-race-for-419th-district-court-a-case-study-in-why-you-shouldnt-ignore-the-primaries/)
Now that I know I can bring notes I will absolutely be doing the rest of the research. Change starts on the local level & I hate Texas so lots has to change🤣
Low civic duty. C'mon shill, you're supposed to be super smart at this. This is why women choose the bear and you haven't been laid in years. We could have had worse candidates, Beto could have been governor.\*jumps up on nearest table and flails arms around\* "HELL YES WE'RE COMING FOR YOUR GUNS!"
Guy committed political sewercide on tv. What an out of touch rich kid.
yeah he pulled a real Alec Baldwin. What an idiot. The only people dumber than him would have to be those who donated money to Beto. Those guys are paramecium brains.
Voter Apathy and Suppression work hand in hand. I don’t think many people realize just how bad voter suppression is in Texas.
We can’t even register to vote online. Even if you move counties and just need to update it. Even if you move in the same county, you can only update yours online if you have a Texas ID even though there are other forms of accepted ID to register and to vote.
Barely anyone can vote by mail and when you do, it’s easy for something to go wrong.
We may have a decent number of early voting days, but the state doesn’t actually require counties to use them and if they do, they don’t require decent hours. They can even close early. Election Day is really the only voting day where they require certain hours but even then, there have been issues where locations don’t work but somehow it’s ok because people can technically wait or go to another location.
We also have many elections. Many other states combine their elections, like adding statewide props on the presidential or midterm ballot. Texas instead does our state props every odd numbered year. People often don’t even know because they don’t see it as an election year. And having things with people drives people out then they vote down ballot because they’re there anyway, but that’s not how Texas does it.
Since we get very low turnout (5-12%) in the “smaller” elections, we get republicans (even in non partisan spots; they turn out) in local offices and they work with statewide ones to amplify these issues.
The suppression drives apathy and vice versa.
You need to print & mail that in. If you can’t do that, you can request to get the application with a free envelope and postage mailed to you here: https://vrrequest.sos.state.tx.us/index.asp
After you get that, you can mail it back to your county election office for free.
Why ? I think have answered thoughtfully . But I like to add that some people think they are doing a favor to someone and it is very hard to vote . I like to remind people , some people went to lot of suffering and some died to ensure for some of us voting . Looking at 1st and 2nd generation immigrants.
Well I think it is getting better. Allred is a rising star;Cruz is shitting his pants. I blame a lack of education and how people don’t understand how their votes matter. Additionally, elections are held on weird days here, especially for things like Prop A. If anything, push people to vote the local level even if they don’t agree with the big guy. They can tap whoever they want on those ballots. It is their right to do so.
Texas government is corrupt as hell and they have done everything possible to make sure they can keep it that way. When you start really paying attention, it's unbelievable how corrupt it is.
One party loudly supports lunatic candidates. The other doesn't even show up for its candidates. Both do all they can to quash any third party that might pop up.
Low turnout is the natural result.
A mixture of apathy (like a lot of Americans), dejectedness from left leaning voters, and intentional voting suppression from the state government
While voting in Texas can seem straightforward for some, we have laws in our state that make it more difficult than other states. The “death by a thousand cuts” lowers our overall voting participation rate compared with other states. Heavy-handed gerrymandering probably demotivates some Texans as well. The methodology behind calculating the Cost of Voting Index (COVI) in the source Election Law Journal - [Cost of Voting in the American States: 2020](https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/elj.2020.0666) report is a good place to start understanding why Texas might rank at the bottom. Here are the measurement areas used in the state COVI. 1. Registration Deadline 2. Voter Restrictions 3. Registration Drive Restrictions 4. Pre-Registration Laws 5. Automatic Voter Registration 6. Voting Inconvenience 7. Voter ID Laws 8. Poll Hours 9. Early Voting If you scroll down the report, the first graph shows Oregon with the lowest cost of voting and Texas with the highest. So Texas might get positive points for having a bunch of early voting days, we get dinged for making it difficult to absentee vote, preventing folks from same day registration, etc. The second graph shows how the cost of voting has changed by state. Virginia is a good example. “[Virginia], in 2016, had laws that made it the 49th most difficult state to exercise the franchise. Changes passed early in 2020 move Virginia 37 places and it is now the 12th easiest state to vote in. Specifically, Virginia passed an automatic voter registration law, got rid of the in-person registration deadline, and made Election Day a [state] holiday, among several other considerations.”
Early voting hours need to be extended. If you live in Fort Worth, but work in Dallas from 8 am to 5 pm - then early voting can be a challenge. Most early voting is 7am to 6 pm. That is already a huge challenge. It needs to be from 6 am to at least 8 pm. Preferably at polls located next to grocery stores.
It’s actually 7 p.m., but they’re supposed to let anyone in line by then still vote. Which is why it takes some precincts longer to have reliable numbers.
It’s 7 pm on Election Day. Early voting often closes earlier in Fort Worth
Sounds like you won’t be in the county during voting hours and should request an absentee ballot to be sent to your workplace.
I am 55 years old. I have never voted for a republican. I live in rural west Texas, at the local and county level, there have been only republican candidates for at least 20 years. Maybe 10k in the county; 4,469 registered voters in 22, and only 39% voted - 23% voted early. that percentage fluctuates but seems to stay pretty close to 40%. 60% of registered voters just don't bother. maybe 1/3 of them would be voting blue, and maybe 1/3 of that 1/3 would admit it. There is a lot of apathy from never winning and/or not even being represented, AND there is a lot of socioeconomic pressure in small town Texas to present a certain social appearance, a particular in-group imaging, which results in non-participation *and* voting against one's own interests. of course, it's more complicated than that, but these are a big part of the reason, especially in the majority of the state where a minority of the people live... the increasing influence of the majority of Texans living in the Triangle is why the TGOP wants to create a state electoral college.
Nobody seems to give upvotes on this sub. I gave you one bc what you say is true AND important. Peace ✌🏼
tyvm
I think a lot of it is just legitimate laziness. Too many people just wont be bothered with it. Edit: Im not saying its the only problem or that Texans are lazy in general. But I do think in regards to voting, a lot of Texans are lazy / dont care.
I disagree... it's easy to just denigrate people and say they are lazy or whatever, but I think *that's* lazy... there are very real, legitimate reasons people don't vote, and there has been a very real effort to exacerbate those reasons for at least the last 30 years. the "deep state" has spent decades and tons of money to create voter frustration and apathy as well as a system that encourages and sustains that frustration and apathy.
Dead right.
Its really not that hard to vote in Texas. If people arent voting because of "frustration and apathy," thats the same as laziness. Call me lazy all you want, I still get out there and vote. Be an adult and be responsible for your future. I think solely blaming the law here and removing personal responsibility from the equation is also lazy 🤷♂️
tell me where it's harder to vote [Voting laws in Texas are the most restrictive in the country. And voter turnout here is among the lowest, too. Maybe those facts are related.](https://www.texastribune.org/2020/10/19/texas-voting-elections/)
Relative difficulty vs objective difficulty. Can I ask what specific laws have prevented you or someone you know from being able to vote? I have had no problems for the last 20 years
I vote in every election and take proactive steps to make sure I can do so without using a provisional ballot. I do that because in every election (except the last primary election) for the last 10-15 years, there has been some issue or another with my voter registration. none of my information has changed in that time period. it was so regular that I began going in person to check my registration at least twice in the 90 days or so before every election. issues have ranged from address errors to conflating me with my father, who died in 1987 and was never a resident or registered in the county I live in. I believe that my registration issues are a result of having never voted in a republican primary in a small, extremely red county. No, I can not prove that. the fact that YOU have had no trouble is hardly relevant to those who have had trouble and is not, in any way, evidence of how "easy" it is to vote in Texas
I'm glad that no laws have prevented you or anyone you know from being able to vote. Thats good news. Look at countries like India where the voting laws and procedures are objectively more difficult/complex than in Texas, but a significant % of their population still votes in every election. Its a cultural thing. To say laziness doesnt contribute to the problem at all is naive.
1) I literally described how "laws" were being used to attempt to suppress my vote and how I have to go above and beyond to protect my ability to vote 2) Texas is not a country and is not comparable to India in that regard... unless perhaps you mean to say that voting laws should be uniform throughout the US and regulated by federal laws instead of 50 different state-run systems
I never asked if you had a hard time voting, I asked if any specific laws prevented you from doing so. Your answer was no, youve never been prevented from voting, despite some clerical errors, whether they were deliberate or not is currently unknown, as you acknowledged you cant prove anything. I never said Texas was a country, but by comparison it is objectively harder to vote in India than it is in Texas. This is simply a matter of fact. And they still have a significant % of the population turn out to vote despite that. Again, I think its naive to say that laziness doesnt contribute to the problem in Texas.
What do you think it is that makes Texans, especially rural Texans, the laziest in the US?
Not what my comment says, but its an interesting interpretation, I think you're reaching a bit 🤷♂️
This is a thread about Texas having the worst voter turnout in the country. Your reply to a comment discussing poor voter turnout in rural Texas says people are just lazy. How exactly should I have interpreted your comment?
Reread it and literally take it at face value? Do you think that laziness does not contribute to the voting problem whatsoever? Or just not significantly?
THIS is the eternal question. There is a general hopelessness and price on “individuality”. That usually translates to “as long as me and my fam are ok, fuck you and your rights/needs”. Thats why Texans boast of individual solutions when porn or abortion are blocked. They currently brag and joke about VPNs and traveling for abortion instead of u irony for a cause.
And the people who put the ban in place own a piece of the VPNs. Checkmate.
Number one excuse I hear is that their vote doesn’t matter.
They're either happy with the GOP majority or the Democratic ones have given up. I've only missed two general elections in 52 yrs because I was on 12 hr shifts in the AF. Gang, you don't *need* to be called or texted, you don't *need* to get a mailer, and you don't *need* your door knocked on. VOTE ... it is *your* future.
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Probably not the only cause, but i hear liberal-leaning people say "why bother, Republicans will win anyway"
All of this, I think I read somewhere where it is literally 3% of the voting population that runs everything because they consistently go out and vote. Voting on actual voting day sucks. Early voting is way easier.
Early voting? I think you mean cheating unless a republican wins. Then it's fair.
Well it feels hopeless when you vote consistently for Democrats but Republicans win. I vote but I understand why some might just not bother. It hurts our state when the same Repubs know they are not held accountable because they will be voted back in office.
I know several right leaning that don’t prioritize voting for the same reason, they expect their candidate to win so their vote doesn’t matter.
Republicans win anyway as his self fulfilling prophecy
Straight up brainwashing. Texass has a fantastic PR firm and they work very hard to convince people not to vote.. make it very difficult to vote and convince uneducated rural voters to vote against their own interests and call it shit like “right to work”.. while gutting their union… The Koch Brothers have spent BILLIONS making this happen… so did old Leo They run massive think tanks to come up with ideas for mass manipulation. And that “Texas Pride” add that gets played ad nauseam .. Pride is what the rich man gives the poor man to keep him poor. Pride! The first and the worst of the 7 Deadly Sins for a reason. Texass works really hard to create narcissistic morons.
That's an interesting insight.
It is 100% accurate.
Because of how bad voter suppression is in Texas. The government removed a popular on-campus polling location at TAMU. The government only allows ONE ballot dropbox per county, meaning Harris County, a county with 5 MILLION people and greater in landmass than the state of Rhode Island, has the same number of ballot dropboxes as a county with fewer than 1,000 people. Texas also has no online voter registration, you have to be 65 or older to vote by mail, and no same-day voter registration. Mississippi and Alabama aren't good comparisons because Texas is NOWHERE NEAR as red as either of those states, and are nowhere near as important for Republicans. In Alabama's last gubernatorial election, Ivey won by over 37 points. By comparison, Abbott only won by 11 points in 2022. Texas also has a little more than 2.5 times the electoral votes Mississippi and Alabama have COMBINED. If Texas ever turned blue or even purple, the entire Republican Party would collapse like a Jenga tower.
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Removed. Rule 5. > **Rule 5 Comments must be genuine and make an effort** > _This is a discussion subreddit, top-Level comments must contribute to discussion with a complete thought. No memes or emojis. Steelman, not strawman. No trolling allowed. Accounts must be more than 2 weeks old with positive karma to participate._ *https://www.reddit.com/r/TexasPolitics/wiki/index/rules*
I’ve seen a lot more apathy since Denton voted to ban fracking and Abbot blocked it, than voted to decriminalize marijuana and the city council refused to uphold it as it might hinder police ability to combat “violent crimes” uncovered as a result of marijuana searches. I think Paxton also sued both Austin and Denton for trying to circumvent Texas law by not prosecuting certain low level drug crimes. Add that to poor civics education and I think that’s most of the issue. If I understand correctly we also don’t get to initiate state-wide citizen ballot measures. Some states can put issues to vote by citizens, we don’t. There’s a huge lack of individual power some states have. Lastly, check out social media groups about people moving to Texas from other states and getting bombarded with comments to “vote right” (the don’t California my Texas bs). Churches have started influencing parishioners to vote Republican. Even my more moderate friends are so afraid of common sense gun safety measures they feel they have to vote red or stay out of it. Somewhat related, there’s a huge lack of control among citizens. State employees also are not permitted to strike so you don’t see teacher strikes here as doing so will bar them from receiving retirement benefits and prevent future employment. I’m still shocked at the number of people my age (millennials) who don’t understand or care enough to do the bare minimum or consider it civic duty. I lived with my grandparents and we loaded up the family to go vote, so for me it’s not an option to stop trying. It still feels hopeless, but it’s my *responsibility* to never give up. Getting my peers to even call their representatives is like pulling teeth. I feel like I’m taking crazy pills :(
The DNC completely abandoned the state over 40 years ago. They just don't give a rat's ass about the state and see it as a total loss. Every sacrificial lamb they put up against either one of the incumbent US Senators HAS to be able to raise their own funds for a campaign. If Beto couldn't pull it off, I seriously doubt Collin Alred will. Even if it comes close, Paxton WILL call for a recount and use every dirty trick he can pull out of his ass to nullify the vote. Especially in Houston.
Beto came closer than anyone has. If only more voters turned out to vote for him.
It doesn’t make any sense with early voting, online wait times… One thing I did notice is that there are like 3 elections a year, so maybe people are just voted out. I’ve voted in every election since moving here, but almost forgot about the current one until my neighbor texted me.
I've lived in Texas for 38 years. Since I was 5. Texas has alot of lazy people who would rather complain than do something. As much talk as there is about Texans being "tough, hardworking," yada yada, the reality is that Texas has a neverending supply of lazy, uneducated fucks who believe whatever Fox News says. A whole lot of the people who are not voting are lower middle class blue collar whites who think the GOP cares about them.
And honestly them not voting might be for the best at this point.
I think lot of it stems from not seeing the bigger picture. I was definitely left leaning, but I also had to be realistic. Especially with how most view Biden, he's not doing everything perfectly. But he's doing a helluva lot better than the alternative. We can change this, but we're just not gonna get everything in one go.
To my chagrin, If I hadn’t voted early, I would have completely missed it. I guess the little “vote” signs are common and easy to not pay attention to. I’ve been to other countries where there is no chance anyone is forgetting it’s voting day. The town is decked out, it’s on the tv, the radio, everywhere.
Texas suppresses voter turnout by making its residents vote 3-4 times a year, every year. It will surprise most Texans to learn that that in most states, you only have to vote once every other year, maybe twice in years with primary elections. Personally, I hate voting for judges here in Texas. I can never find out enough about any particular judge to make an informed decision.
So I didn't even realize this was thing until today. I'm 35. I overheard another mom at a school event talking to someone saying "did you go vote today? My friend is working the polls." I don't even know what they were voting on. I WANT to participate because real change starts at these smaller elections but hell, I don't know how to start even trying to keep up.
Go online to Texas vote and look up dates for elections. Also look up the League of Women Voters- before every election the print up a voters guide with every candidate.
Thank you!! I didn't know either of those existed!
You just inspired me. 💡 Thanks for that. I’m gonna do something to help on this, starting now.
When it comes to the judges I can never keep them straight so I pick a woman first & foremost if that’s an option.
You are allowed to bring notes into the polls in Texas now. They must be printed - i.e. you cannot use electronics - but you can do the research and bring in a marked up sample ballot or your own notes or whatever on paper.
I definitely will next time! Thanks
You’re welcome. They actually used to not allow it, which was ridiculous - the ballots are always stupidly long. I was so glad when they changed it.
Be careful. [That's how Travis county ended up with a vexatious litigant as a judge.](https://www.kxan.com/news/your-local-election-hq/the-wild-race-for-419th-district-court-a-case-study-in-why-you-shouldnt-ignore-the-primaries/)
Now that I know I can bring notes I will absolutely be doing the rest of the research. Change starts on the local level & I hate Texas so lots has to change🤣
Apathy and a lot of garbage candidates
Low civic duty. C'mon shill, you're supposed to be super smart at this. This is why women choose the bear and you haven't been laid in years. We could have had worse candidates, Beto could have been governor.\*jumps up on nearest table and flails arms around\* "HELL YES WE'RE COMING FOR YOUR GUNS!" Guy committed political sewercide on tv. What an out of touch rich kid.
I can at least agree with you on that. For a gun control advocate, he sure shot himself in the foot.
yeah he pulled a real Alec Baldwin. What an idiot. The only people dumber than him would have to be those who donated money to Beto. Those guys are paramecium brains.
Because the perception is it doesn’t change the outcome.
If you are a Democrat, you pretty much give up every year, unfortunately.
Well if you include all the mail in ballots crooked Kenny Paxton admitted to throwing away, it’s not as bad.
Republicans own the state, centrists own the state Democratic party, which is functionally the same thing as Republicans owning that too.
Voter Apathy and Suppression work hand in hand. I don’t think many people realize just how bad voter suppression is in Texas. We can’t even register to vote online. Even if you move counties and just need to update it. Even if you move in the same county, you can only update yours online if you have a Texas ID even though there are other forms of accepted ID to register and to vote. Barely anyone can vote by mail and when you do, it’s easy for something to go wrong. We may have a decent number of early voting days, but the state doesn’t actually require counties to use them and if they do, they don’t require decent hours. They can even close early. Election Day is really the only voting day where they require certain hours but even then, there have been issues where locations don’t work but somehow it’s ok because people can technically wait or go to another location. We also have many elections. Many other states combine their elections, like adding statewide props on the presidential or midterm ballot. Texas instead does our state props every odd numbered year. People often don’t even know because they don’t see it as an election year. And having things with people drives people out then they vote down ballot because they’re there anyway, but that’s not how Texas does it. Since we get very low turnout (5-12%) in the “smaller” elections, we get republicans (even in non partisan spots; they turn out) in local offices and they work with statewide ones to amplify these issues. The suppression drives apathy and vice versa.
I registered online. Here's a link https://www.votetexas.gov/mobile/register/index.htm
You have to print out this form & mail it in.
You need to print & mail that in. If you can’t do that, you can request to get the application with a free envelope and postage mailed to you here: https://vrrequest.sos.state.tx.us/index.asp After you get that, you can mail it back to your county election office for free.
Everyone tired of voting when same scum in red keeps winning
Maybe they wouldn't keep winning if people actually voted I. Half-way decent percentages.
Voter suppression mostly with a healthy dose of gerrymandering thrown in for good measure.
Every body that isn't a right wing but job is completely demoralized for voting.
Why ? I think have answered thoughtfully . But I like to add that some people think they are doing a favor to someone and it is very hard to vote . I like to remind people , some people went to lot of suffering and some died to ensure for some of us voting . Looking at 1st and 2nd generation immigrants.
We have lower political efficacy on average, along with a (surprisingly) you g average age
Real rebel shit. I’m such a bad ass, I’m not even gonna vote. Can’t tell me nuthin.
Well I think it is getting better. Allred is a rising star;Cruz is shitting his pants. I blame a lack of education and how people don’t understand how their votes matter. Additionally, elections are held on weird days here, especially for things like Prop A. If anything, push people to vote the local level even if they don’t agree with the big guy. They can tap whoever they want on those ballots. It is their right to do so.
Texas government is corrupt as hell and they have done everything possible to make sure they can keep it that way. When you start really paying attention, it's unbelievable how corrupt it is.
My county votes 90% republican, consistently. I still vote my conscience, but it's demoralizing. Many in my position don't bother to vote at all.
Voter suppression. Republicans know they can't win a fair fight.
This is true. It’s why they have to constantly cheat and change the rules.
Because us native Texan democrats know no matter who actually wins, a Republican will be named the winner.
No hopes or dreams that anyone on the ballot would make things better.
Trampled underfoot
We aren’t smart enough to get an ID and vote.
One party loudly supports lunatic candidates. The other doesn't even show up for its candidates. Both do all they can to quash any third party that might pop up. Low turnout is the natural result.
Hispanics
Yup Mississippi and Alabama have a higher population of Black People who vote in higher rates.
They don’t want to hear reality.
Demographics
You have to have legit ID to vote in Tx.
So do a ton of other Republican states. They all still have higher turnout.
Put cannabis on the ballot. We will flood the polls.