There’s confusion over some mail-in ballot applications arriving across North Texas. To vote by mail in Texas, you must request a mail-in ballot application first. The form can be found on the Secretary of State’s website. Another form has been popping up unsolicited in North Texas mailboxes, with only four spaces to fill out the eight numbers on your Texas driver’s license.
It had voters and NBC 5 wondering if it was legit. It caused so much chatter in Hunt County that Elections Administrator Sheri Nerren took to Facebook to address concerns.
“They are legit applications. People seem to jump on that bandwagon when it comes to elections that it’s always fraudulent. And it’s really not. These are organizations that are trying to do good to help a certain demographic vote,” Nerren said.
She says campaigns or third-party registration groups will often send out unsolicited mail and ballot applications to voters. Some even arrive with your info filled out.
“What usually happens is our organizations request voter lists from the state of Texas, and they usually sort those out,” Nerren said. “They can do it on party. They can do. It on age and this in this case because it was a ballot-by-mail application, they targeted the 65-and-older voters in Texas and created a ballot-by-mail application based on public information provided by the state.”
It’s important to note that in Texas, there are very strict rules on who can vote by mail. You must be 65 and older, sick or disabled, out of the county on Election Day and during early voting, or expected to give birth at that time. So just because you received one doesn’t mean you qualify. Nerren said that when in doubt with a form or to double-check your voter registration, check with your county elections office.
“If they do receive one of these forms and they’re worried about it being legit, it is always, always best to call the local elections office in your county,” Nerren said.