Every year, the Johnsons of Dallas make sure to vote early.
“It is a lot easier for me,” said Eddie Johnson.
Other voters across North Texas do the same.
“It is more convenient,” said Ellen Smith of Dallas.
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Also, they want to make sure they vote before election day.
“I love to early vote. I never know what is going to happen, work, come election day. Right, you may have to travel or something like that, so it’s great to get out and get it done now,” said Jason Kinder.
So far the numbers are down in the major counties, after the first eight days of early voting. Here are the comparisons, from numbers provided by each county:
Dallas County
- 2022: 229,341
- 2018: 331,461
Tarrant County
- 2022: 231,920
- 2018: 249,770
Collin County
- 2022: 152,955
- 2018: 190,209
Denton County
- 2022: 133,830
- 2018: 145,116
DECISION 2022
Collin County Elections Administrator Bruce Sherbet talked to us about the numbers differing from 2018.
“It was an anomaly of an election. It was more tracking like a presidential turnout. We set all kind of records in that election,” said Collin County Elections Administrator Bruce Sherbet.
Sherbet points to the high interest in the senate race between Senator Ted Cruz and former El Paso Representative Beto O’Rourke.
“It really had a lot of interest from the voters. That we could tell that from the first day of voting once we started early voting. This one we don’t get the same sense of that. Now the turnout hasn’t been bad, it’s just not the same kind of turnout we had four years ago,” added Sherbet.
Delvinia Johnson would like to see more people voting.
“I think that people vote for president but they don't vote for things that are important for the president. You know, Congress and mayors.
Early voting runs through Friday. Dallas County has extended hours on Thursday and Friday, from 7 a.m. until 9 p.m.
Experts will be watching election turn-out numbers closely. COVID-19 changed the way some voters participate, whether it's voting early or by mail. They'll be watching to see if trends established during the pandemic continue.
