Officials with the Greater East Montgomery County Chamber are hoping to boost historically low voter participation ahead of the upcoming Nov. 3 general election through a new initiative known as EMC Votes.
The breakdown
In the chamber's most recent Community Intelligence report, "EMC Voters: Civic Participation & Voter Engagement 2026," officials analyzed data from five general elections held from 2016 to 2024. In each instance, data showed East Montgomery County's voter participation lagged behind Montgomery County's.
In the 2024 general election, data shows East Montgomery County trailed other Montgomery County communities, with more than 22,600 registered voters in East Montgomery County opting not to participate.
"We want EMC to show up," GEMCC President and CEO Mark Linabury said in a Sept. 22 news release. "If our neighboring communities can show up, why can't we? The more our community participates, the stronger EMC's voice becomes."
Diving in deeper
As part of the research, chamber officials said they analyzed demographic characteristics—including educational attainment, age, household income, homeownership, residential mobility, and race and ethnicity—to try to determine a correlation with voter turnout data, but were unsuccessful.
"We tried to isolate a common issue that could explain what we were seeing, but the data didn't support one," Linabury said in the release. "That was important for us to understand. Rather than assume we know why people aren't voting, we need to ask them."
What’s being done
As a result, chamber officials have now launched an online survey to help determine what barriers are keeping registered voters in East Montgomery County from heading to the polls. The survey asks one question: What is getting in the way of you voting?
Chamber officials said they hope the survey results will provide insight they can then use to help bolster local voter participation going forward.
Stay tuned
Early voting for the Nov. 3 general election runs Oct. 19-30. The last day to register to vote was Oct. 5, and the last day to apply for a ballot by mail is Oct. 23.
On the Nov. 3 ballot, voters can expect to find federal, state and local elections including those for Montgomery County judge, New Caney ISD board of trustees and Roman Forest City Council. To read candidate Q&As ahead of the upcoming election, visit communityimpact.com/houston/election.
Montgomery County residents can cast their ballots at any polling location during early voting; however, Election Day locations are by precinct. Visit https://elections.mctx.org for polling locations.
