Voters gear up for election

With the November general election just two months away, the Cameron County Elections Department is gearing up for another period of voter registration.

The last day to register to vote in the Nov. 2 general election is Oct. 4, according to the Secretary of State’s Office, which means citizens who have yet to register have about a month to do so.

Friday is the first day to apply for a ballot by mail.

Several congressional, state and county positions are up for grabs as well as several seats on the Brownsville Independent School District Board of Trustees.

Election officials and the candidates hope that interest in these races will increase voter registration numbers. There are approximately 170,000registered voters in Cameron County.

“I think those races are going to be very interesting and that people are aware of those races. … I think (it) is going to get people out to vote,” Elections Administrator Roger Ortiz said.

Voters will be deciding the governor’s race, which has Republican incumbent Rick Perry being challenged by Democratic candidate Bill White, and in Cameron County, the race for county judge that has Republican incumbent Carlos H. Cascos being challenged by Democratic candidate John Wood. Wood currently serves as Precinct 1 county commissioner.

Ortiz said his office will deputize several individuals today at the UTB-TSC campus so that they can help register people to vote.

The number of voter registration applications coming into the election’s office is starting to increase, and Ortiz expects the numbers to continue to rise as the deadline for registering draws closer.

To be eligible to register to vote in Texas, you must be a U.S. citizen, a resident of the county where you register, be at least 18 years old, not a convicted felon unless your sentence is completed including probation or parole, and not be declared totally mentally incapacitated by a court of law or partially mentally incapacitated without voting rights.

Residents wanting to register to vote can fill out a form at the county elections office, or can go online to the website of the Secretary of State’s Office and print out a blank application and mail it to the county elections office. Applications are also available at the county tax offices and city offices.

“We are having several elections coming in November and it is going to be important for people to come out and express their opinion through their vote,” Ortiz said.