Elections Deadlines to Know Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 Elections Deadlines to Know 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 An “Election” cycle (for the voter registrar) is approximately 90 days – beginning roughly 60 calendar days before an election and concluding 30 calendar days after Election Day. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

45 - 60 days prior to Election Day Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 45 - 60 days prior to Election Day Check your confidentiality information Individuals designated as confidential should be suppressed upon notification. NOTE: there is no delay in timing regarding when confidentiality goes into effect. It is immediate. We recommend before each election confirming that your latest confidentiality requests or notifications have been entered/applied. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

45 - 60 days Prior to Election Day Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 45 - 60 days Prior to Election Day Work dashboard tasks such as DPS applications, Texas Online Updates, SC 91 Voter Registration Applications, Possible Deceased/Felons, etc. Online Counties need to run and work the precinct 99999 report for active and suspense voters at least weekly. Offline Counties need to run the Voter Sync report (weekly if needed). REMEMBER: TEAM is the Official List of Registered Voters. It is the duty of the Voter Registrar to daily ensure TEAM has the most up to date data for your voters. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

45 - 60 days prior to Election Day Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 45 - 60 days prior to Election Day It is important to add your polling locations in TEAM. We also provide it to VIP (for online counties). Voters can then look up their polling sites online through our website or VIPs site. Online Counties: Enter Polling locations into TEAM Once polling locations are assigned, assign Election day precinct to your polling locations. Offline Counties: submit URL links to our office & upload Data directly to VIP. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

45 - 60 days prior to Election Day Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 45 - 60 days prior to Election Day REMINDERS ON THE OLRV Add districts to the elections and selection the ballot style box. The ballot style box must be generated prior to running the OLRV. Run your OLRV - Section 18.006, Texas Election Code: before the beginning of early voting by mail. before the beginning of early voting by personal appearance * before election day * * Needed if the list does not contain the names of all voters eligible to vote. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 QUESTION: Why do you put running the OLRV in the 45-60 days category? ANSWER: FPCA Ballots must be mailed no later than the 45th day prior to Election Day. As a practical matter Early Voting Clerks may start mailing ABBM ballots around the same time. As such, somewhere between 60 days and 45 days prior to Election Day, mail ballots will start going out to voters. We recommend coordinating with the Early Voting Clerk for the election regarding when this list is actually needed. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

30 - 44 days prior to Election Day Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 30 - 44 days prior to Election Day Continue running the Precinct 99999 report and voter sync weekly up to Election Day. Work dashboard tasks such as DPS applications, Texas Online Updates, SC 91 Voter Registration Applications, Possible Deceased/Felons, etc. Provide updates to the OLRV such as a Supplemental or Registration Correction Lists. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 GOAL: To have the best (cleanest) possible list for use during Early Voting/Election Day and to keep the Early Voting Clerk updated for Ballots by Mail. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

30 - 44 days prior to Election Day Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 30 - 44 days prior to Election Day POLLING PLACE INFORMATION Offline Counties should notify the Secretary of State of ANY changes to your URL information. Online counties continue to update and enter Polling Place information in TEAM as it becomes available. Note: Don’t forget to assign precincts to your ELECTION DAY polling locations. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 The final 30 days Process any pending applications/ changes to voter records received by the voter registration cutoff deadline and run your ballot styles prior to generating your Official List. Provide the OLRV along with any Supplemental or Registration Corrections List as needed (Example is located in the Forms manual on the SOS site). If taking possession of Provisional Ballots on Election Night, a notice must be posted 24 hours before Election day. Preferably wherever you post the notice of meeting of governing body. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 The final 30 days Voter Registration Deadline. Any voter registered after this date will not appear on OLRV generated in TEAM due to their EDR (Effective Date of Registration) being after Election Day. Voter Updates with a “Registration Date” after the cutoff deadline will not appear on the OLRV until the “Valid From Date” has been reached. We recommend NOT cancelling a voter submitting a Texas Online Change that lists a residential address in a different county until after the election. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 The final 30 days VOTER REGISTARTION CUT-OFF DATE With the 2011 USPS change in requirements, there are occasions where USPS is not postmarking the voter’s application card.  In order to handle this situation, we have developed a recommended order of identification to help registrars determine whether or not an application should be considered to be timely.  The dates that can be used (based on whether the application was submitted directly to the county or forwarded from the Secretary of State’s office), in order, should they appear, are:   4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 The final 30 days Applications Sent Directly to the County A postmark directly on the voter application or accompanying envelope. The date written in by the applicant next to their signature. If none of these exist, then the date received by the voter registrar’s office should be used. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 The final 30 days Applications forwarded from the Secretary of State’s Office: The date postmarked on the envelope sent to you by the Secretary of State’s office. If the date postmarked on an envelope sent to you by the Secretary of State’s office is after the deadline, we will include a note stating that the applications were received on or before the deadline.  4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 QUESTION: Why would my county need to “hold” processing information after the Voter Registration Cut-off Deadline? ANSWER: It doesn’t. Some counties prefer to get their OLRV ready to go before entering any new applications/updates. One reason a county may decide to hold processing information is because they manually enter voting history after the election and want to accurately capture the precinct the individual resided in at the time the ballot was cast. If you are manually entering voting history, TEAM captures the precinct the person resides in at the time the ballot is reported to TEAM. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 QUESTION: What do I need to know about holding applications/updates? ANSWER: Sections 13.071 and 13.072, Election Code contemplate that you are processing application on a continuous basis (not holding applications.) You are still required to forward applications with residential addresses in another county not later than the second day after the date the application is received. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 DO NOT HOLD ENTERING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATIONS REMEMBER: Individuals designated as confidential should be suppressed upon notification or receipt of documentation. NOTE: there is no delay in timing regarding when confidentiality goes into effect. It is immediate. We recommend prioritizing confidentiality notifications or documents. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 The final 30 days VR Office Hours (Section 12.004(b)&(d)) Normal hours may be extended (must be posted) Normal hours must be extended during early voting by personal appearance in a county with a population of 100,000 or more: during early voting in a primary election or the general election for state and county officers (both Regular Day and Saturday/Sunday extended hours apply) during early voting in a special election ordered by the governor (only Regular Day extended hours apply) Notice must be posted 3 business days before extended hours begin. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 The final 30 days VR Office Hours (Section 12.004(b)&(d)) Normal hours must be extended during early voting by personal appearance in a county with a population under 100,000 on receipt by the early voting clerk of a written request for the extended hours submitted by at least 15 registered voters of the county: in a primary election or the general election for state and county officers (both Regular Day and Saturday/Sunday extended hours apply) during early voting in a special election ordered by the governor (only Regular Day extended hours apply) 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

ELECTION DAY Voter Registrar Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 ELECTION DAY Voter Registrar VR Office Hours (Section 12.004(c)) Must remain open during the hours the polls are required to be open for voting on the date of any general or primary election in which a statewide office appears on the ballot OR any other election held in the county on a uniform election date. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 QUESTION: Why do we need to be open when the polls are open if the phone procedure is no longer valid? ANSWER: Your office needs to be open in order to answer questions such as, “Where is my polling location”, “ Am I registered to vote” among others that may pop up. If there are any last minute changes that need to be made to districts or streets, you will need to be available to make those and print out an updated Supplemental list or recommend a Registration Correction List. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 After the Election 1.) Provisional Ballot 2.) Submit Voter History 3.) Process Statement of Residence 4.) Run Suspense Voter History Report 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

After the Election – Provisional Ballots Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 After the Election – Provisional Ballots For an election held on the date of the general election for state and county officers, the voter registrar shall complete the review of the Provisional Ballot Affidavit Envelopes no later than the seventh calendar day after election day. (Sec. 65.052; 1 T.A.C. Sec. 81.175(a)(2)). Be sure to check the Secretary of State’s Calendar for specific deadlines surrounding the review of provisional ballots. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

After the Election – Provisional Ballots Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 After the Election – Provisional Ballots When investigating provisional ballots remember these few things: The provisional ballot envelopes should be accompanied by a List of Provisional Voters – be sure to verify you have all ballots needing to be processed. Make copies of ALL provisional ballot envelopes as the copy serves as the voter’s registration application, which you will need to save in your Application files. Check the DPS Web Portal for any provisional ballot indicating the person registered at DPS-DO THIS FIRST 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

After the Election – Voting History Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 After the Election – Voting History Voter Registrars have 30 days to enter voting history into TEAM. This includes Voting by Mail, Early Voting, and Election Day. As a reminder, voting history is to be submitted no later than the 30th day after the date of the primary, runoff primary, or general election or any special election ordered by the governor. Sec. 18.069. Counties should report both ballots that were accepted and those that were rejected. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

After the Election – Statements of Residence Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 After the Election – Statements of Residence Process any Statement of Residence, voter updates, new voter applications, as well as any other changes returned to your office in envelope No.4. NOTE: A statement of Residence with a residential address listed in another county should be forwarded to the correct county in accordance with Section 13.072(d), Election Code. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

After the Election – Suspense Voter History Report Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 After the Election – Suspense Voter History Report Run and work the Suspense Voter History Report. This report displays voters reported to have voted after being placed on Suspense. Voters having voted after being placed on Suspense are not eligible for cancellation during the next Mass Cancellation under the National Voting Rights Act of 1993 (NVRA). In order to correct this: Confirm with the Early Voting Clerk that you have received all Statements of Residence submitted during the election. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

After the Election – Suspense Voter History Report Texas Secretary of State Elections Division 4/17/2019 After the Election – Suspense Voter History Report If the Early Voting Clerk has no additional Statements of Residence or other Voter updates to supply, then Issue each voter on the list a Notice of Address Confirmation with response device. This will update the voter’s status change date and place the voter back in the correct order for a future cancellation. WE RECOMMEND RUNNING AND WORKING THIS REPORT AFTER EVERY ELECTION. 4/17/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division