Counties set first-day voter turnout record

Alejandra Yañez and Omar E. Zapata | THE RIDER

Cameron and Hidalgo counties reported the highest first-day early voting turnouts in their histories with 10,985 and 18,971 in-person ballots cast, respectively, on Tuesday. 

“This is a fantastic development,” Remi Garza, the Cameron County elections administrator, said about the turnout for the Nov. 3 presidential election. “To see this level of participation is extremely encouraging for our community.”

In November 2018, Cameron County reported 6,975 voters on the first day. This is almost a 60% increase, according to an email sent to The Rider from Garza.

The location with the highest voter turnout in the county was the Brownsville Public Library Main Branch on Central Boulevard, leading with 1,520 voters on Tuesday and 1,431 on Wednesday. 

The total number of early voters on Tuesday in Cameron County was 8,634. 

Ruben Loza, a mass communication sophomore, said he drove to the Brownsville Public Library to cast his early voting ballot Tuesday. Loza said the line was so long he had to go to another location.

“The line was so long, I was so proud of my community,” Loza said.  

He decided to go to the Jacob Brown Auditorium on International Boulevard, where he voted in less than five minutes. 

Asked why he decided to vote early, he replied, “I voted early because I really do believe that this election is very important, not only for me, but for my home state and for my country because this election will determine my future, your future and my parents’ future.”

He said he appreciates the fact that people have the opportunity to vote early and vote through the mail due to the current situation with COVID-19.

“I think voting early provides the convenience of being able to vote anywhere in Cameron County and at the time that works best for you and on the day that works best for you,” Garza said. “When you only vote on Election Day, you are limiting yourself to a specific location with specific hours. Early voting gives you that flexibility to take your time and to find the polling place that best serves you, as opposed to on Election Day.”

Loza said that despite the pandemic, people should make sure to cast their ballot and not be afraid to have their voices heard. 

He said he is a first-time voter and, due to the pandemic, he had plenty of time to research the candidates. 

“It’s my first one and it’s the most important one,” Loza said. 

Asked about Gov. Greg Abbott’s decision to limit ballot drop boxes to one per county, Garza replied, “I think it doesn’t affect us here in Cameron County because we use an elections administrator system and we only have one location. So, his decision impacts larger communities, and I think it does a great disservice to those communities.”

Hidalgo County voting 

A record 43,097 voters in Hidalgo County cast ballots in person or by mail during the first two days of early voting. 

Yvonne Ramon, Hidalgo County elections administrator, told The Rider she is proud of and excited for the county because of the large voter turnout on the first day.

Ramon said around 11 a.m. Tuesday, Hidalgo County had around 4,000 voters and was a bit apprehensive thinking that the county would not match first-day early voting numbers from the 2016 presidential election. 

“Not only did we match it, we surpassed it,” she said. 

Ramon said Tuesday’s first-day early voting numbers are the highest turnout ever for Hidalgo County. 

The county had 18,971 in-person votes and 6,169 mail-in ballots for a total of 25,140 on Tuesday.  

Compared to first-day early voting numbers from the 2016 presidential election, the county saw an increase of 446 in-person votes and 1,237 mail-in ballots on Tuesday. 

On Wednesday, Hidalgo County again saw a record early voting number with 16,389 in-person votes and 1,568 mail-in ballots received.

Wednesday’s numbers saw an increase of 508 in-person votes and 1,413 mail-in ballots compared to the 2016 presidential election. 

Nicholas Cañas, an education senior, was busy doing his clinical teaching on the first day of early voting, but found time to vote Wednesday in the University Ballroom on the Edinburg campus. 

“I had to come get graduation stuff and I definitely wanted to vote for sure,” Cañas told The Rider.  

He said growing up, politics was not talked about much but thinks it is important to get educated when you become eligible to vote. 

Asked about the record number of voters on the first day of early voting in Hidalgo County, Cañas replied, “I think that’s excellent, honestly. It just gets more people to have their voice heard for sure.” 

Ramon said the elections department always anticipates for some problems to arise such as a polling location not having a strong internet connectivity or poll workers not arriving on time at locations. 

She said during the first two days, they had no problems with connectivity and poll workers showed up on time at all 31 polling locations in Hidalgo County. 

Kassandra Elizondo, an exercise science junior, told The Rider she wanted to avoid traffic and long polling lines by voting early Wednesday morning at the University Ballroom. 

“I think it’s important to vote early, especially people in college,” she said. “Like, our schedules are all over the place.” 

Ramon said she wants people to get informed on who they are voting for before going to a polling location due to there not being straight party voting this election. 

“Not only do we have federal, state, county and presidential races but we have 24 additional cities, water districts, South Texas College and we’ve got a charter amendment,” she said. 

Early voting ends Oct. 30. For more information about voting or polling locations in Hidalgo County, click here, and for Cameron County, click here.