Turnout for Austin's District 4 special election crosses 2% after 1 week of early voting

Halfway through the early voting period for Austin's City Council District 4 special election, 742 voters in the district have cast a ballot to select Greg Casar's successor.

The early voting period for the seven-person race began Jan. 10 and closes Jan. 21, and election day is Jan. 25. The election is being managed by Travis County with several polling places operating in District 4 during early voting.

The turnout through the first seven days of early voting represents 2.14% of District 4's 34,655 registered voters, according to the county clerk's office. And with both in-person and mail-in ballots being accepted, the majority of the 742 cast so far—95.96%—were tallied at one of the county's three voting centers. The share of mail ballots is slightly less than in last November's city election when more than 5% of Austin early voters cast a ballot by mail.

The county clerk's office announced Jan. 13 that uncertainty related to Senate Bill 1, a state elections and voting bill passed into law last year, had prompted rejections of around half of all ballot-by-mail applications submitted ahead of the March 1 primaries. However, the clerk's office said the application issue is not affecting District 4 voters in the January special election.

Those seeking to vote by mail may view the status of their application or ballot through the secretary of state's online tracker.

More information on the current election may be found through the county clerk's elections website or by calling 512-238-8683.