Correcting the Rumors’ and Misinformation About the Runoff Election

You Can Vote in the Runoff if Registered and Did Not Vote in a Different Party Primary

With an unusually high number of runoff elections in Collin County and across the state it is not surprising that there a great deal of interest in exactly who can vote an in which runoff election.

“As a past member of the Elections committee for the Texas House of Representatives I can tell you there are always a lot of questions about runoff elections and who is eligible to vote in them,” said State Representative Jerry Madden from District 67.

“The most frequent misconception is that you must have voted in the primary election to vote in the primary runoff. The actual election law states that any registered voter can vote in the runoff unless they voted in the Primary election for a different party,” stated Madden.

Some believe that if you voted in either primary you can vote in either runoff and that is incorrect as well. You cannot switch parties between the primary and the runoff, said Madden.

“Another frequent misconception circulating is that you cannot vote in the primary runoff unless you were eligible to vote in the primary election. Any person who is registered on or before March 13 is eligible to vote in the runoff. The runoff election will be held April 13 and to be eligible you have to register 30 days prior to that date,” continued Madden.

There are a record number of primary runoff races on the ballot this election cycle. There are 8 runoff races on the local Collin County Ballot alone. Looking at the state wide ballot for the Republican Party there are 6 runoffs for U.S. Representative, 8 runoff elections for the Texas House, one for Supreme Court Justice and one for the State School Board. On the Democratic ballot there are runoff elections for U.S. Representative and one for the Texas House.

This is taken directly from the Texas Secretary of State Web site:

Q: Does a voter have to vote in the main election in order to vote in a runoff-election?

A: Section 11.001 of the Texas Election Code prescribes the specific qualifications necessary in order to vote in a Texas election.  There is no specific requirement to have previously voted in the main election in order to participate in the subsequent run-off election.  Therefore, such a requirement cannot be enforced.  However, please note that if you participated in a main primary election for one party, you cannot participate in the runoff primary election of another party.

Early voting for the Republican and the Democratic Primary Runoff Election begins on April 5 and runs through April 9. Election Day is April 13.

All registered voters are eligible to vote in the Republican Primary Runoff Election as long as they did not vote in the March 2nd Democratic Primary Election, according to the Republican Party of Texas website. The reverse is also true, all registered voters are eligible to vote in the Democratic Primary Runoff Election as long as they did not vote in the March 2nd Republican Primary Election.

The short version to the question ‘Who can vote in the runoff’ is that anyone registered on or before March 13 can vote in a runoff for Texas Primary Runoff election as long as they did not vote in the opposing party’s primary election on March 2 explained Madden.

Visit www.collincountygop.com or www.co.collin.tx.us/elections.