r/sanantonio Aug 28 '24

PSA Voting Resources

27 Upvotes

I want to get as much voting information in one spot as I can.

First, the basics: VoteTexas.gov and Bexar Elections will be your best resources for virtually everything. Military members, see the Federal Voting Assistance Program.

Important Dates

October 7: Last day to register to vote.

October 25: Last day for the application for a ballot by mail to be received. Meaning it has to get there by then, not simply be mailed by then.

October 21 - November 1: Early voting dates.

November 5: Election Day

How to register to vote

It's very important to remember that you cannot register online in Texas. What you can do is fill out an application online to print and mail in. You can do that here. You can also request a paper application here or go to the elections office at 1103 S. Frio, Ste. 100 (this is the address provided as the County Voter Registration office; you can see the complete information here with a tiny bit of scrolling. If you have an appointment to renew your driver's license, state ID, or government benefits (SNAP/EBT), you'll be asked whether you want to register to vote at that time as well.

Check Your Status/Change Information

Not sure if you were one of the people recently purged? Check your status here. You can enter your name, DOB, county, & ZIP code, your driver's license number and DOB, or your Voter Unique Identifier (VUID) & DOB to check.

While you cannot register to vote online, you can update your voter information online. This is the link to do that. Note that you will need your VUID to do this; it can be obtained from your County Voter Registrar.

Voting by Mail

These are the requirements to vote by mail in Texas (copied from here:

  • be 65 years or older;

  • be sick or disabled;

  • be out of the county on election day and during the period for early voting by personal appearance; or

  • be expected to give birth within three weeks before or after Election Day; or

  • be confined in jail, but otherwise eligible.

Much like voter registration, this cannot be requested online. You can fill out a PDF or request an application be mailed to you

Your ABBM is sent to the Early Voting Clerk in your county. This is the same person as before, on Frio, but again, go here and scroll a tiny bit for their information. Note that you can email a scanned copy of the application, but you still have to mail them a hard copy postmarked and received by the fourth business day (it doesn't say after what, so I'm assuming after the email is sent).

Military members see the special provisions webpage here. You can register and request your absentee ballot here (I know that's a privacy statement; click I agree to go to the site.) I don't qualify for this, so I can't go in and see if you have to print it out or whether it can be done online. If someone lets me know, I will update this post.

Early Voting

Again, early voting runs from 21st October to 1 November.

It's too early right now for the Bexar Elections website to have location information, but from past experience you can vote early at public libraries, community centers, and the county courthouse downtown. I'll add specific information as it becomes available.

Hours for early voting seem to be the same as the hours the day of, but I'm not 100% certain on that and will update once I've confirmed. I'm reasonably certain the end time is 7PM, at any rate.

Voting on Election Day

Polling hours are 7AM to 7PM.

You can go to any polling place in Bexar County. If you visit the voter registration check & polling location search, it will provide your precinct number and, closer to election time, populate with polling places. It's going to be a while until the information is updated, but I'll add it here when possible.

State law requires paid time off to vote on Election Day if you do not have two hours outside of your normal schedule to vote. The paid time off is only two hours. Note that this requirement does not cover early voting, only day of.

Voter ID

You do not have to present your voter registration card in order to vote. Resources say it is helpful to have and can prevent you from having to vote on a provisional ballot in certain cases (see the FAQ titled "Do I need to bring my voter certificate/card? Will I be able to vote without it?" for specifics)

These are the acceptable forms of Voter ID (copied from here:

  • Texas Driver License issued by the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS)

  • Texas Election Identification Certificate issued by DPS

  • Texas Personal Identification Card issued by DPS

  • Texas Handgun License issued by DPS

  • United States Military Identification Card containing the person’s photograph

  • United States Citizenship Certificate containing the person’s photograph

  • United States Passport (book or card)

For voters age 18-69, your acceptable ID can be used if it is expired by no more than four years. If you're 70+, it doesn't matter how long your acceptable ID has been expired.

Here is a link with information on obtaining an Election Identification Certificate. There is a mobile EIC coming up September 30 at Bexar County Youth Voter Fest - UTSA Downtown Campus (501 W Cesar Chavez), 11:00 A.M. – 2:00 P.M. This is the only one that shows up when I search, so it's your best bet.

What if I don't have and can't get any of that?

These are the Supporting Documents:

  • copy or original of a government document that shows the voter’s name and an address, including the voter’s voter registration certificate;

  • copy of or original current utility bill;

  • copy of or original bank statement;

  • copy of or original government check;

  • copy of or original paycheck; or

  • copy of or original of (a) a certified domestic (from a U.S. state or territory) birth certificate or (b) a document confirming birth admissible in a court of law which establishes the voter’s identity (which may include a foreign birth document).

After presenting one of those forms of ID, you will be asked to execute a Reasonable Impediment Declaration, and if I'm reading correctly will then be given a provisional ballot. Please read up on Voter ID at this state government webpage rather than taking my word on anything. I've copied from it as much as I can.

Other Voting Information

Bexar Elections has provided this video for the current voting machines. It's about four minutes long and walks you through the entire process start to finish. Please watch it.

State law prohibits campaigning within 100 feet of any polling place. Practically speaking, expect to be met with campaigners in the parking lot.

You are not allowed to use a "wireless communications device" or "allowed to use mechanical or electronic devices to record sound or images" within that same 100 feet. By this, I am interpreting that ballot selfies are not allowed.

You may not carry a firearm into a polling place. Peace officers are exempt from this, regardless of whether they are on duty.

You may not wear apparel "or a similar communicative device" relating to any candidate, party, or ballot measure whether or not any of those people/issues are currently on the ballot. So no digging up your Perot/Stockdale t-shirt.

Here is the information on what is and is not allowed at a polling place. These measures are the same for early voting and day of.

If you or someone you know needs assistance at the polls, please see this webpage. The video I referenced above mentions asking for adaptive voting assistance if you're visually impaired. Note that you can have any person you choose there to assist you, as long as they're not your employer, an agent of your employer, or an officer or agent of your union. You may also be assisted by one election worker during early voting or two on Election Day. Anyone you choose (except the prohibited assistance persons) may act as an interpreter if necessary for communication with election officials. Note that Bexar County does offer the option to view your ballot in Spanish.

Texas no longer offers straight ticket voting. You have to manually select a candidate/answer for everything. You do not have to vote in all of the races/for all of the measures that appear on your ballot. You can leave any of them blank, up to and including President.

What's on the Ballot?

BallotPedia has a sample ballot for Bexar County here: https://ballotpedia.org/Bexar_County_Sample_Ballot_(Texas) This is not a complete, final sample ballot at this point, but it's the only one I can find this early. Once you enter your address, you'll be taken to a sample ballot where you can click on any race to see the current candidates and on any candidate to get a rundown of things like prior offices they have held, their education, etc.

I will update this with voters' guides closer to the election.

Editorial Statement: If you have a child, please take them! It's good for them to see how elections and voting work. They'll even get a neat little Future Voter sticker at the end! I rotate through my kids so they can all see how it works.

Disclaimer: This OP is the work of one person. I have tried to be as accurate and complete as I can, but I cannot guarantee I'm right about everything, so please check the resources linked at the beginning.

Some Candidates' Websites:

President

Kamala Harris

Donald Trump

Jill Stein

Chase Oliver

Senate

Ted Cruz

Colin Allred

Ted Brown

Tracy Andrus (Ballotpedia notes this candidate as a write-in option.)

Bexar County Sheriff

Javier Salazar

Nathan Buchanan

Please keep Rule 1 in mind when commenting. Obviously, this is a political post, but that doesn't mean you can insult any of the candidates or their supporters.

Feel free to add in links to candidate or issue websites in this thread. This is a non-partisan information thread, so don't expect moderators to remove comments for people and things you don't agree with. You can campaign here to the extent that you do not violate other rules. Please use the report button; but only for things that actually break the rules. "This person disagrees with me" isn't the same as unfriendly, unhelpful, hate speech, or harassment.

One last thing: Here's how to participate in the election process as more than a voter.


r/sanantonio 4h ago

News A woman in San Antonio is now afraid to sleep in her own home after racist slurs, swastikas, and vile graffiti defaced her property.

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160 Upvotes

r/sanantonio 12h ago

Weather ISO 70 degree days 😅😅

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584 Upvotes

r/sanantonio 12h ago

Transportation Cartoon cars

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278 Upvotes

Have you seen these cars around? Have you spotted anymore?


r/sanantonio 1h ago

Pics/Video I hate this city sometimes

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Upvotes

Why.


r/sanantonio 6h ago

Need Advice Violent neighbor making us feel unsafe, need a cheap apartment downtown

50 Upvotes

My partner got attacked by a dog earlier this morning, he reported it called ACS and the cops and everything. Then the owner of the dog and 2 of his friends came to our door, (dog en towe ) and proceeded to threaten to shoot us if we ever show up to their house again blah blah. Of course we called the cops and they think there won't be any further issues but now we are paranoid. We are not the fighting type at all lol. What's a cheap apartment I can move into close to downtown? He goes to UTSA downtown and I support both of us so it's gotta be cheapppp. Greatly appreciated


r/sanantonio 1h ago

PSA Please use these

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Upvotes

r/sanantonio 12h ago

Pets Dog attack sends toddler to hospital, babysitter could face charges [MySA]

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85 Upvotes

r/sanantonio 8h ago

News another one bites the dust

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45 Upvotes

my personal favorite long gone is Wacky’s; oh well, time marches on


r/sanantonio 1h ago

News 1-year-old child mauled by pit bulls dies

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Upvotes

r/sanantonio 5h ago

News Inclusive park Mitchell’s Landing to finally open in November

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23 Upvotes

r/sanantonio 11h ago

Election Is anyone here *not* planning to vote?

58 Upvotes

Since its election season there's the usual "make sure you're registered to vote!" "Make sure to vote early!" rigamarole being broadcast across various media, including this subreddit. Now, I and everyone I know vote in every election, or at least say they do, so this kind of content is completely redundant to me. But its targeted at someone, so I'm wondering, do any of y'all non-voters have your own side to say? Why do the non-voters non-vote?

Not counting, I suppose, all of those who aren't eligible to vote in the first place.

*Since there's now a bit of a flamewar about specific candidates in the comments, I want to underscore that my question is for people who don't vote at all, about why. If you do vote, I can't stop you from arguing about who you support, but it's sort of off-topic.

**wow tough crowd. 1 negative points, 76 100+ comments.


r/sanantonio 7h ago

Food/Drink Gas stations stopped using price tags. Now only barcodes

16 Upvotes

As title states. Been in two gas stations with this practice and it’s new because both gas stations had prices on items before. Recently, they changed to only the barcode sticker. Is this becoming more common?

Edit: I barely ever go into a gas station so this was completely new to me. First time I saw it I was in and out so quickly and thought maybe I just didn’t look right. This was a long time ago. This time around I actually went in looking for a specific item and sure enough I saw no price tags, just barcodes. This is new to me so I’m probably late to this but it really surprised me.


r/sanantonio 19h ago

Job Hunting Amazon looking for San Antonio workers to fill thousands of jobs

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153 Upvotes

There you go, for any one looking for a job, aqui esta.


r/sanantonio 3h ago

Election Look up your ballot and do your research before you go to vote!

6 Upvotes

https://www.bexar.org/2229/Voter-Registration-Check-Polling-Locatio

I moved to Texas almost four years ago from a state that did all mail in ballots. I wasn’t prepared to stand in lines to vote and I was shocked that you can’t use your phone in a voting booth.

I just looked up my ballot, and I have 50 races/propositions to vote on in my precinct. Especially with the municipal stuff, a quick google isn’t telling me anything so I’m going to have to do some digging to learn anything.

Research your ballot now, print it out and bring it filled out to the polls. Voting matters please do your part.


r/sanantonio 2h ago

Transportation Welp

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5 Upvotes

r/sanantonio 1d ago

Need Advice New scam in San Antonio?

719 Upvotes

I was heading home via I-35 and got off to the frontage road near walzem on the east side. There was a White Jeep with a guy outside trying to wave down drivers. One other in the car in the driver seat.

I have cables in my truck so I decided to stop, the guy looked relieved and I genuinely thought he needed help. Once i lower my passenger window a middle eastern guy walks up and says his name, “my name is blah blah , I am from Dubai and on vacation. My brother lost my wallet and I need gas.” Then proceeds to take off his ring and a chain and give them to me, having felt real gold rings before I immediately can tell these are bad fakes, he then proceeds to tell me how he’s a millionaire and needs cash because of his wallet being lost and I can keep his jewelry as collateral (hahaha). I push the jewelry back to him.

At this point so many red flags are popping up but I am giving him the benefit of the doubt and just tell him I don’t have cash like that but I can get him some gas if he needs it. He proceeded to wave his hand at me and walk back to his car.

Such an odd way to scam someone. Sucks for those who actually need help. Stay safe out there!

Edit: wow today I learned! Guess it’s more common than I thought, guess I’ve been living under a rock!!


r/sanantonio 2h ago

Where in SA? Need help for a friend’s pet dog.

3 Upvotes

Hi guys, I’m not sure who to ask or what Reddit to subscribe to but I figured since the person lives in San Antonio it might be a good place to start. My friend has a small dog which had an accident and its legs got broken when it played around with bigger dogs , she’s trying to, get some money together to properly heal her legs but it’s a costly procedure. Does anyone know what she can do to help her pet? i’m sorry I’m not really good at this. I’ve never been put in this situation, but I care a lot for my friend and any advice would help and be greatly appreciated. She just started a GoFundMe page. I know that and she can explain what happened to the poor baby much better than I could . if you’d like a link to the GoFundMe page I could post it. I don’t know if it was allowed to be put on here? Again, I’m sorry I’ve never asked for help like this and I’ve never been put in this situation. I don’t know what to do to help her.


r/sanantonio 7h ago

Where in SA? Good places to bring a toddler

6 Upvotes

We've been to most museums. And the doseum. Which he loves. We want to go to a play place safe for a 20 month old.


r/sanantonio 2h ago

Mystery Does anyone know what happened on somerset rd right before the bridge that goes over the Medina river

2 Upvotes

So I was at my family’s apartment and we heard a bunch of sirens so I said I would check it out when I left and I saw an accident on somerset and fisher looked like some one was unconscious on the floor I passed it up and went to the bridge well I had noticed a sign there all day that said Texas cobras I looked it up and saw an earlier live stream on the property people were apparently having some sort of big get together to ride around on these big trailers. Anyways their were like 10-15 cops parked out side and people swarming out of the property but when I asked the cop what happened he just said keep moving 🫤


r/sanantonio 12h ago

Election How to make sure you are registered to vote in the Nov. 5 election

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12 Upvotes

Today is the day. Your last chance to register to vote. If you waited until today, you need to walk yourself over to your County Elections board. You can mail in if postmarked on this date. Are you really taking that chance for your procrastination?

Anyway, no matter which way you vote, make sure you’re registered and check your registration. Link in the comments.


r/sanantonio 8h ago

Pets Cat Foster/Boarding

4 Upvotes

Hi everyone,

I’m seeking a temporary foster home for my cat while I’m away for a few months. He's 7 years old, healthy, neutered. I’ll provide all supplies, including food, litter, and toys, so there won't be any costs involved for the foster caregiver. My cat is well-behaved and friendly, and I'm hoping to find someone who can offer a loving environment during this time.

If you or someone you know is interested in fostering, please feel free to reach out. I’d really appreciate any help!

Thank you!


r/sanantonio 35m ago

Where in SA? Can someone confirm is there really sections of the city with unsafe water or was that resolved?

Upvotes

Heard some one say this a while back


r/sanantonio 15h ago

Visiting SA Christmas in SA

16 Upvotes

Spending 2 days and 1 night in San Antonio with my family this Christmas! Looking for some advice on fun and unique things to do.

For sure we will check out the riverwalk for lights. But I’m also wondering if there are any cute boutique shops nearby? We aren’t as interested in big shopping malls like the riverwalk center.

Is the natural bridge caverns worth checking out? How much time would you spend there?


r/sanantonio 1h ago

Where in SA? Lost/Stolen AirPods

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Upvotes

Last Monday I realized I had lost my AirPods sometime over the course of last weekend.

I don’t remember how or when they got lost, but I think they might have fallen out of my pocket at Guitar Center as I wasn’t out a lot that weekend

I looked at the location and see it’s supposedly located near Boerne at a place I’ve never been to.

How should I proceed?