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Eight Days to Election Day: Travis County Voters Head into the Home Stretch
Early voting wraps up Friday, with over 242,000 ballots already cast across the county
AUSTIN — With eight days until Election Day on Tuesday, November 3, Texas voters are in the final stretch of the 2026 midterm election, and Travis County’s early voting window is closing fast.
In-person early voting began October 19 and runs through Friday, October 30.
Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., with extended hours until 10 p.m. at some locations on Thursday and Friday.
Travis County voters can cast a ballot at any open site in the county, and the county has opened 45 early voting locations, including several new ones meant to make voting easier to reach.
By the numbers
Through Sunday, 242,039 Travis County voters had cast ballots, either in person or by mail. That amounts to just over 25% of the county’s 952,713 registered voters, or one in four.
MORE NUMBERS
- Day one turnout: 49,987
- Busiest day so far: Day 1 on October 19
- Mail ballots returned: 13,449
- Comparison with 2022: 330,658 voted early
2026 is well ahead of 2022’s pace and should pass the 2022 final early vote total within the first couple of days of this week.
Raw count
- After seven days, 2026 has 256,222 early and mail voters, about 77.5% of the 330,658 who voted early in 2022.
- To match 2022, it needs 74,436 more, or about 14,900 a day over the five remaining days (Oct. 26-30).
- Weekday totals last week ran about 39,000 to 41,000 a day, and even the slower weekend days were 25,450 (Saturday) and 18,733 (Sunday). At anything close to those levels, the 2022 total would be passed on today or Tuesday, which is a projection rather than reported data.
What’s left
Voters who miss early voting can still turn out on Election Day, when polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. The county plans to operate 201 Election Day polling locations.
Texas voters must present an acceptable photo ID to vote in person. Accepted forms include a Texas driver license, a Texas Election Identification Certificate, a U.S. passport, and a few others. Voters without one of those can find the alternatives on the county’s website.
County officials have also been working to address registration processing problems tied to two computer glitches that affected systems statewide ahead of early voting. Voters unsure of their status can check with the county.
For locations, wait times and hours, visit votetravis.gov or call 512-238-8683.
Sources: Travis County Clerk’s Office, City of Austin election documents, FOX 7 Austin. Add your own figures where bracketed.
What’s on the Agenda at Tonight’s Austin Parks and Recreation Board Meeting
The Austin Parks and Recreation Board meets tonight at 6:00 PM in the City Hall Council Chambers (Room 1001, 301 W. 2nd Street).
The agenda is full, with a school partnership, a parkland change for a water project, a long-term plan for Pease District Park, and two proposed working groups. Here is what to know before you go or tune in.
How to Take Part
The meeting is open to the public in person, and you can also speak by phone. Each speaker gets three minutes. Phone speakers had to register by noon yesterday, and you can register for a specific item once, either in person or remotely.
General public comment on topics not on the agenda is limited to the first 10 people who sign up before the meeting starts. If you’d rather watch, the meeting streams on ATXN Live. Questions can go to Tim Dombeck at (512) 974-6716 or Tim.Dombeck@austintexas.gov.
Youth Soccer and Literacy Support
The board will start with approving the minutes from its September 28 meeting. Then it takes up letters of support for Parks and Recreation’s Community Recreation staff who created the MLS GO youth soccer program, with Division Manager David Crabb presenting.
Crabb will also present a recommendation to City Council on an interlocal agreement with Austin ISD to support the Literacy First Program and Tutoring Intervention Program. The initial term runs 12 months through September 30, 2027, at up to $100,000. Four optional 12-month renewals of up to $100,000 each would bring the maximum total to $500,000.
Parkland and Park Planning
Two items concern the city’s green spaces.
Waller Beach at Town Lake Metro Park. The board will consider recommending that Council approve a change in use of dedicated parkland along East Avenue. Austin Water would permanently use about 7,475 square feet and temporarily use about 3,590 square feet to build infrastructure for the IH-35 CapEx Project. Austin Water would pay Parks and Recreation a $1,055,440 mitigation payment, so there is no impact to the General Fund. Managing Engineer Kevin Koeller will present.
Pease District Park. The board will weigh a recommendation that Council approve the Operations and Maintenance Phase Plan for the park. Christine Chute-Canul of Parks and Recreation and Nicole Netherton, CEO of the Pease Park Conservancy, will present.
Housekeeping and New Working Groups
The board will also:
- Set its 2027 meeting schedule for the fourth Monday of each month at 6:00 p.m., except December.
- Consider creating a working group with the Givens community to develop a feasibility plan for a commercial kitchen at the Givens Recreation Center (sponsored by Eubanks and Orme).
- Approve an appointment to the board’s seat on the Joint Sustainability Committee.
- Consider creating a working group on the preservation, conservation, restoration and sustainability of Zilker Park (sponsored by Abou-Emara, Eubanks and Taylor).
Adult Leagues and the Director’s Update
One item is discussion only: adult athletic leagues, sponsored by Eubanks and Kearns-Osterweil. No vote is listed.
The evening ends with a staff briefing from Parks and Recreation Director Jesús Aguirre, covering community engagement events, planning, development, maintenance, program and administrative updates. The board will then take up future agenda items before adjourning.
Accessibility
The City of Austin will provide reasonable modifications and equal access to communications on request. Sign language interpreters or alternative formats need at least 48 hours’ notice. TTY users can route through Relay Texas at 711.
The Dog’s Head project involves the annexation and multi-decade development of approximately 2,600 acres along the Colorado River in Southeast Austin.
Named after the shape formed by its surrounding boundaries (the Colorado River, US-183, and SH-130), the site includes former sand and gravel mining land as well as ecologically sensitive riverbanks. Developer Endeavor Real Estate Group aims to transform the land into a massive mixed-use area containing housing, businesses, industrial plants, and potentially data centers or manufacturing facilities. (Austin Current)
A ground delay issued Sunday at Austin’s airport has since been lifted.
Two people were injured early this morning in a crash om SH 71 near COTA.
Crews are working to repair a water line break that happened early Sunday near FM 812, which is not far from the Circuit of the Americas.
Police are investigating a shooting at The Domain that sent one person to the hospital Sunday afternoon.
Austin police said the shooting happened at 3:20 p.m. in the 3300 block of Esperanza Crossing.
2023 Austin shooting spree suspect Shane James Jr. is expected to appear in court Monday in Travis County as he faces charges including attempted capital murder.
ICE activity was reported early Sunday in the area of Dessau and Howard Lane, as shown in these photos. There were also reports for Parmer and Harrisglen via Reporte Austin.
WEATHER
SUNDAY’S HIGH / LOW TEMPERATURES
AUSTIN-BERGSTROM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
CAMP MABRY
5-DAY FORECAST / AUSTIN, TEXAS
HALLETTSVILLE, Texas — A minor magnitude 2.7 earthquake struck Lavaca County on Sunday afternoon, according to data from the U.S. Geological Survey. The tremor occurred at approximately 2:54 p.m. CDT near the Wied area, centered about 5.1 miles west of Hallettsville at a shallow depth of roughly 1.2 miles (2 km).
Eight days and counting.
Campaigns across Texas were in overdrive this weekend as candidates for statewide and local offices made a final push across the Lone Star State. Early voting is already underway—and both sides are treating every single vote like a deciding one.”
The midterms are shaping up to be the most expensive election cycle in history as campaigns pour huge sums into the ads voters see virtually everywhere.
Today, Shane Goldmacher, a national political correspondent for The New York Times, breaks down how Democrats are tying Republicans to President Trump, inflation and corruption, while Republicans are trying to paint Democrats as too liberal. He also weighs in on what those competing messages reveal about each party’s hopes, vulnerabilities and strategy as Election Day nears.
Republicans redrew 15 House districts hoping to protect their majority, but most have become competitive races as the party’s redistricting strategy falls short of expectations.
Texas’ 34th Congressional District, which stretches from Brownsville to Corpus Christi, is one of five redrawn last year by Republicans in the Texas Legislature who wanted to protect the GOP majority in the U.S. House.
Democrat Vicente Gonzalez and Republican Eric Flores square off in a U.S. House district redrawn to benefit the GOP. (Texas Tribune)
Polls show West Austin Democrat Vikki Goodwin is neck-and-neck with incumbent Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. (Houston Public Media)
NEW BRAUNFELS, Texas — The owners of Cooper’s Old Time Pit BBQ in New Braunfels publicly disavowed a Saturday Get-Out-The-Vote rally featuring Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, claiming the political event was organized by a rogue employee without management’s knowledge or authorization.
00:51:07 – Paxton Sues OpenAI and CEO Over ChatGPT Safety…
02:09:19 – Fort Bend Democrat Arrested on Federal Fraud Charges…
03:11:04 – Illegal Alien Convicted of Stealing Deceased Infant’s Identity…
04:06:24 – Court: Federal Switchblade Restrictions Violate Second Amendment…
What happens when the state intervenes in a school district? Can a takeover improve student outcomes? And how much say do parents and communities have in the decisions that follow?
From The Texas Tribune.
SPORTS
NFL: The Houston Texans are back on the ropes after a stunning loss to the New York Giants on Sunday, abruptly snapping a two-game winning streak and dampening hopes that the team was finally turning its season around.
Missed tackles, wide-open receivers and big play after big play led to a 27-21 overtime loss to the New York Giants on Sunday that dropped Houston to 2-5. (Associated Press via MSN)
The Texans enter their Week 8 bye week searching for answers.
The NFL’s fiercest rivalry takes center stage tonight on Monday Night Football as Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys head north to battle Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles.
With both teams fighting through a demanding opening stretch in the NFC East, this prime-time showdown at Lincoln Financial Field carries massive implications for the divisional crown.
NHL: The Dallas Stars defeated the New York Islanders 6-3 on Sunday night, securing their fifth consecutive victory with a dominant three-goal surge in the final frame. The matchup featured the Dallas return of Islanders head coach Pete DeBoer, who faced his former squad at the American Airlines Center. (Associated Press)
ON THE SCHEDULE
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 27
COLLEGE BASKETBALL: NEW YORK, N.Y. — Sophomore guard Isaiah Johnson recorded a team-high 18 points, but No. 7/7 Texas dropped an 87-74 decision at No. 13/14 St. John’s in an exhibition contest on Sunday afternoon in historic Madison Square Garden. (Texas Longhorns)
Texas opens the 2026-27 regular season when it hosts Chicago State on Monday, Nov. 2. Tip is set for 8 p.m. Central in Moody Center, and the game will be televised nationally on SEC Network.
The Texas Longhorns face a season-defining blow as All-American left tackle Trevor Goosby is ruled out for the year with a torn patellar tendon. Can the offense withstand the loss of its most dominant lineman—and possibly top player—as Andre Cojoe steps into the spotlight?
AUTO RACING: AUSTIN, Texas — Mercedes phenom Kimi Antonelli delivered a flawless, dominant drive from pole position to win the United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas on Sunday.
Antonelli executed a flawless one-stop strategy to convert his grid-topping start into a victory over Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
While the 20-year-old Italian extended his Drivers’ Championship lead with his ninth win of the season, late points finishes by team-mate George Russell and Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton mean Antonelli’s historic world title celebrations remain on temporary hold heading into the next round in Mexico City.
Maceo Spice and Import Company, Galveston (2026)
The Maceos didn’t just stay in Galveston through the storms. For decades, they ran the place.
