More than 100,000 Harris County voters cast their ballots during the first week of early voting for the Nov. 7 joint general and special elections.

According to data from Harris County's Elections Department:

• 91,676 voted in person
• 9,284 accounted for mail ballots

Harris County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth said in a news release that more people are choosing to vote early this year compared to the most similar election that took place eight years ago.

“We have been working hard to ensure voting centers are up and running on time and voters are getting in and out easily," Hudspeth said.

More than 700 election workers were stationed at the 68 voting centers across Harris County during the early voting period that began Oct. 23, and more than 6,000 will be working at the 701 voting centers on Election Day, Nov. 7, according to the news release.

“It takes a lot of people to run an election, and I am grateful for each and every one of them," Hudspeth said.

Zooming out

Election responsibilities are no longer under the discretion of the now defunct Harris County elections administrator since State Bill 1750 eliminated the elections administrator’s office during the summer legislative session. The Harris County clerk and tax-assessor collector departments assumed election duties.

• With the elections office eliminated, staff from the former department were transferred to within the county clerk’s office.
• During a September mock election event, Hudspeth said her staff is working to ensure that all voting machines are working properly and counting votes accurately.

Also of note

Days before early voting, Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson released a preliminary state audit report Oct. 19 from the November 2022 election that found problems within Harris County.

Harris County was selected for an audit as part of legislation passed in 2021 that required audits of four randomly selected counties, according to a news release.

Key findings in the report include:

• Harris County's voter registration system including over 9,000 more voters than were reported to the statewide voter registration system
• Failure to provide necessary supplies to polling places
• Equipment issues and incomplete paperwork

Under SB 1750, Nelson’s office may assume administrative oversight of Harris County elections.

Hudspeth said in a news release that her office is actively working the state secretary’s office to find solutions to the issues that were cited in the audit.

“In my 15 years of working for two Republican and two Democratic county clerks, I was part of election teams that conducted successful elections. But the public should know that 'successful' isn’t the same thing as 'flawless.' The election office has never experienced a flawless election,” she said.

The details

There are 42 political entities on the Nov. 7 ballot.

• However, voters will only see the contests that are connected to the address where they are registered to vote.
• Some may see a minimum of 15, while others a maximum of about 35 contests on their ballots.
• Only voters who live within the city of Houston’s legal boundaries are eligible to vote in the Houston mayoral, controller and City Council races.

Getting Involved

Harris County election information is available at www.harrisvotes.com.