Brown County voters preparing for Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, should confirm where they are eligible to vote, bring an approved photo ID and allow time to review their selections before casting a ballot. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time, and anyone still in line when polls close must be allowed to vote.
The guidance was provided by the Brown County Elections Office and shared by the Texas Association of County Election Officials, or TACEO. It covers polling locations, identification requirements, voting machines, election-night reporting and the later canvass and certification process.
What Brown County voters need at the polls
Voters should check their polling-place options through the Texas Secretary of State’s personal voter portal or by contacting the county elections office. Whether voters may use any location in the county depends on whether their county participates in the Countywide Polling Place Program. In counties outside that program, Election Day voters must go to the polling place for the precinct where they are registered.
Texas recognizes seven forms of approved photo identification:
- Texas driver license
- Texas personal identification card
- Texas handgun license
- Texas Election Identification Certificate
- U.S. military identification card
- U.S. Citizenship Certificate with a photo
- U.S. passport book or card
Voters ages 18 through 69 may use an approved ID that expired no more than four years ago. Voters age 70 or older may use an expired approved ID regardless of how long ago it expired.
A voter who does not have, and cannot reasonably obtain, one of the approved photo IDs may complete a Reasonable Impediment Declaration and provide supporting documentation. Examples listed in the guidance include a voter registration certificate or utility bill.
Voters who cast a provisional ballot because of an identification issue have six calendar days after Election Day to provide approved ID to their county voter registrar. They should receive written instructions explaining how to complete that process.
Check the screen and the printed ballot
Texas voting machines are ballot-marking devices. They print a paper ballot showing the voter’s selections, and the vote is not recorded until that paper ballot is deposited in a scanner or ballot box.
Officials said reports of “vote-switching” generally result from screen-calibration problems rather than a change to a voter’s selection. Voters should compare their choices on the screen and then check the printed ballot before casting it. If the screen does not match the voter’s choice, the voter should immediately notify a poll worker so the machine can be removed from service and examined by technicians.
“If you haven’t cast your ballot and plan to vote on Tuesday, remember to find your polling place, bring an approved form of ID for voting, double-check your choices on the screen and again on your printed ballot before you cast it, and if you experience an issue, please bring it to the attention of the nearest poll worker.”
Kristin Miles, TACEO president and Bastrop County elections administrator, said counties test and recalibrate equipment before and after elections. Texas law requires voting systems to produce a paper record that voters can read and election officials can audit.
Why election-night results are not final
Texas voting machines are not connected to the internet or any wireless network. County officials conduct public Logic and Accuracy testing before and after elections, along with hash-validation testing intended to confirm that the software installed on voting equipment has not been altered.
After polls close, counties generally report early-voting totals first, followed by Election Day results as ballots reach the central counting station. Unofficial results are generally released as soon as they are available, although the presiding judge of the central counting station may wait until the last voter in line has voted.
Election-night totals remain unofficial. Before certification, counties must count eligible ballots that arrive after Election Day, including mail ballots postmarked by 7 p.m. on Election Day and received by 5 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 4; eligible military and overseas ballots that may arrive within six days; and provisional ballots from voters who return within six days to provide approved identification.
County canvassing must be completed by the 14th day after Election Day, which is Nov. 17, 2026. For statewide, district and congressional races, the Texas secretary of state tabulates county results, while the governor issues certificates of election between Nov. 21 and Dec. 7. The governor and lieutenant governor races are certified by the Texas House speaker after the next Texas Legislature convenes on Jan. 12, 2027.
Officials also reminded voters that any change to voting hours must come from a Texas court, not county election officials. If a court orders extended hours, county election offices are expected to announce the change through official websites and social-media channels.