Thousands of Texans cast ballots on Monday, the first day of early voting, with many saying that immigration, abortion and the economy were driving their votes.
Lines snaked outside several polling places across North Texas, including Oak Lawn Branch Library in Dallas and Carpenter Park Recreation Center in Plano.
Voters said the presidential matchup between Vice President Kamala Harris, a Democrat, and former President Donald Trump, a Republican, would clearly dictate the direction of the country. But many listed other races — including the U.S. Senate race between incumbent Republican Ted Cruz and challenger Colin Allred, a Democrat, and the Dallas charter amendments — as top priorities.
“This is the most important election in my lifetime,” said 57-year-old Tammy Scheller, who voted at the Tarrant County Elections Administration office in Fort Worth. “I’m pro-life, so that’s a very big deal for me.”
By mid-afternoon Monday, no widespread problems or machine malfunctions were reported in North Texas, providing a measure of relief to voters. Some groups have fueled worries about the security of voting despite repeated assurances from election officials that voting is secure.
The Dallas County Republican Party last week issued a long list of concerns about voting machines, but a state examination found no problems. GOP county chair Allen West wrote Monday morning on X that he voted and did not report any issues in his post.
On Monday, voters overwhelmingly said they did not want to wait to Nov. 5, Election Day, to vote, when long lines or severe weather could disrupt their plans.
“This election is too important for technical difficulties,” said Regina Anderson, a 57-year-old attorney, before voting at the Southside Community Center in Fort Worth. “I want a president who will be for all the people, not just some.”
Collin County residents line up
In Collin County, 43,398 people cast ballots on the first day of early voting, according to the county elections office.
The Allen Municipal Courts building reported the most number of votes cast with 2,186. More than 1,900 people voted at the John and Judy Gay Library in McKinney, and 1,877 ballots were cast at Davis Library in Plano, according to county elections officials. Additionally, 1,846 people voted at the Allen ISD Service Center.
Shortly before 4 p.m. Monday, more than a dozen voting locations were showing wait times of at least 30 minutes on Collin County’s elections website. Plano’s Carpenter Park Recreation Center reported the longest wait times throughout the day.
Collin County Elections Administrator Bruce Sherbet said 748,731 people have registered to vote this year in Collin County.
An election worker at the recreation center said wait times were around 45 minutes at that location, adding that the wait time and line lengths had been consistent since polls opened at 8 a.m. At about 4 p.m., the recreation center still showed a 45-minute wait time.
In McKinney, a line stretched outside the John and Judy Gay Library, one of the busiest polling places in Collin County, late Monday morning. Several people told The Dallas Morning News they waited 20 to 30 minutes to vote, but they did not report issues or significant delays inside the voting areas.
Among them was Susan Gaston, 75, of McKinney, who said she voted for Harris and Allred for a long list of reasons, including women’s reproductive rights, trust in elections and to prevent Republicans from implementing Project 2025.
Project 2025 is essentially a blueprint to help Trump reshape the federal government should he win the election. But the document has sparked alarm from Democrats and some independent voters.
“I think there are a lot of people voting who haven’t read that, and just are barely aware,” Gaston said.
Debra Otero, 54, said she was initially turned away from entering the library’s polling area because she wore a hat in support of Trump. Texas voters are allowed to wear political shirts supporting a candidate or measure — only if they do not appear on the ballot in the current election.
”He did everything for our country. He gave us so much. I’m a small business owner, he gave me so many breaks,” Otero said of Trump. “And all the veterans, all my veteran friends have cheered him. Biden came in and destroyed everything.”
In nearby Allen, Election Judge Bill Barden said people arrived at the Allen ISD Service Center to vote as early as 6:20 a.m., more than an hour before polls opened. County election officials added voting machines at the location following the primary election.
Dallas voters
At Dallas College’s West Dallas Center, immigration topped many voters’ concerns. Linda Brown, 70, who lives in West Dallas, said she cast a ballot to secure the southern U.S. border, which she said has become lawless.
Trump has pledged he would lead historic mass deportations, although arrests for illegally crossing the border plummeted 33% this summer to the lowest level since September 2020, a result of asylum being temporarily suspended.
“We’ve got to make sure our border is protected,” Brown said. “There’s too many people coming in.”
Immigration also drew Issah Tan, 33, a telecommunications engineer voting at the West Dallas Center, who said the U.S. needs to be more welcoming to immigrants. Tan, who immigrated from the Philippines, said immigrants are integral to the country’s success.
“America has a lot of resources and a lot of space that can be shared with others,” Tan said. “There is a lot to go around.”
Mark Grace, 68, said he was particularly worried about propositions S, T and U, which would make it easier for Dallas residents to sue the city in certain cases, give the community power to influence whether the city manager is fired or receives pay bonuses, and mandate Dallas spend more on police hiring, pay and benefits.
Supporters say the propositions would improve public safety and government transparency, but opponents say it would devastate the city.
“I’m voting no, and I’m telling everyone I know to vote no,” Grace said. “This boils down to big money trying to take over the city.”