Councilman Zo Qadri says he has heard from students about accessibility to a ballot box on campus, as the university works to clear any obstacles to the polls.

AUSTIN, Texas — In just a few days, students at UT Austin will join other Texans who are voting in the 2026 primary elections. 

“I plan to vote as soon as possible,” Johnny Abramski said. “We were actually making plans to come here and vote right down there.”

Abramski and Nathalie Vitan are friends at the university who take their civic duty seriously, as does fellow student Nicholas K. 

“As a student, I think the university – as well as organizations [at] the university – make it very easy for you to find that,” Nicholas K said. “I, every single time I vote, I vote literally down the hall in this building right now.”

The polling site on campus is located at the Texas Union building, down the hall from the food court where students hang out every day. 


Concerns over accessibility to voting booths on campus

Austin City Councilman Zo Qadri, whose district encapsulates most of UT’s campus, said he has heard concerns of a possible accessibility issue to voting at the Texas Union building. 

UT students shouldn’t face barriers to voting on their own campus. The Texas Union is the primary polling site on the undergrad campus. I’ve sent a letter to President Jim Davis calling for immediate restoration of clear, accessible voting routes there or ADA-compliant options. pic.twitter.com/WJCZMwUQNX

— Council Member Zo Qadri, District 9 (@CMZoQadri) February 13, 2026

A mound of dirt, construction tools and debris can be found outside the Union building near a frequently used entrance, one that leads to where the polling site is located within the building. 

“We’ve had students reach out to us about their concerns around the polling location, which [is] right outside of the Union,” Qadri said. “There’s construction going on outside of the Union.”

A spokesperson for the university told KVUE on Friday that construction will not be an issue for early voting for the primary. They said the mound of dirt and construction debris, along with other signs of construction, will be gone by Monday. Early voting kicks off on Tuesday. 

Qadri said the university has let him know about the plan to clear the way to the polling location on campus. Some students said they understood how that could have been a concern for accessibility.

“I can see how somebody who doesn’t come to the Union as often as I would, would have trouble getting in because of the construction,” Nicholas K said. 


Why it matters to make voting accessible to all students

The concerns come as students and Texans alike will be making important choices in the coming weeks. 

With the spring primary election coming on March 3, and early voting running from Feb. 17 to Feb. 27, students and Texans will be voting in elections that will set the stage for key races in November.

“Sometimes it’s hard to research candidates while also doing school,” Abramski said. 

One primary in particular is the Democratic U.S. Senate primary election between U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett and Texas State Rep. James Talarico. The two are looking to earn the nomination to run for U.S. Sen. John Cornyn’s seat. Cornyn is facing a primary challenge of his own as he faces Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt in the Republican primary.

According to UT Austin, there are about 55,000 students at the university. Around 44,000 are undergraduates, who have mainly voted at the Union building in recent years. 

In 2020, voter turnout on campus was at 76.6%, compared to the national average of institutions in general at 66%.

Annette Strauss for UT’s Institute for Civic Life surveyed students a few years ago, and found that the top reasons for why students vote is a desire for policy change, the candidates running for office and a sense of civic duty. 

The university said it works to make sure every student has access to the polls.