When the first week of football officially begins at our area high schools and colleges, we fill the stands.
When the State Fair sets up every September in Dallas, we flock to Fair Park to devour the latest wild food concoctions and to catch some wind on the rides.
But when voting season begins, so many of us across North Texas and the state sadly stay home.
We do not cast a ballot to vote.
That is the single largest reason our state has earned the unfavorable and embarrassing distinction for many years of having one of the lowest voting participation rates in the country.
Ponder this:
- Of the 19.5 million Texans eligible to vote in the 2022 general election, 42 percent did. Only 10 states had lower voter participation rates. This rate is 4 points below the national average and 20 points behind No. 1 Oregon, according to University of Florida political science professor Michael McDonald.
- North Texas and Houston ranked among the lowest regions in voter turnout among the 25 largest U.S. metros in 2016 and 2020, according to a recent report for the Houston Endowment, a philanthropic foundation.
- About 500,000 registered voters in Dallas County did not vote in the 2020 presidential election, according to data from the Dallas County Elections Department.
- Turnout was so low, in some of the most recent School Board races in southern Dallas, only 2% of voters decided the outcome. In May 2022, just 946 ballots were cast in a School Board race in Dallas ISD’s District 4.
- Only 18% of registered voters participated in the Texas Republican and Democratic primaries in March — well under the national rate of 23%, according to the Texas secretary of state’s office.
What’s even more shocking and troubling is the realization that about 82% of eligible Texans are registered to vote. We do not have a registration problem. We just don’t exercise our right to vote — the one act that has substantial impacts on not just our lives today, but that of future generations.
Not voting means you don’t get a voice in whether potholes or streets in your community are fixed, you don’t get to complain about whether your property taxes increase or decrease, you have lost your chance to have a say in which schools your children can attend, and you haven’t voted for the elected people who are asked to consider your wishes when a vote is taken on whether our country is going to war.
Voting for candidates in local, state and federal offices affects almost every aspect of our lives. A high voter participation rate is a good sign of a healthy and engaged citizenry.
The Dallas Morning News wants this distinction for North Texas, so we are launching Back to the Ballot — an effort to educate our community on the importance of voting. We used voting data from a myriad of organizations and state agencies and also surveyed 3,000 people to find out what would help you head to the polls. We are grateful so many of you answered us.
From your feedback, Back to the Ballot was designed to provide you with only the information about voting that you requested. It works like this: You will be asked to take a short three-question quiz. From your responses, we have tailored a personalized experience that will provide you with information that serves your interests. The information can range from how voting works to topics such as education and gun laws.
Our goal is to help more people participate in the civic process with confidence, said Ashley Slayton, our Audience Director. She and so many other members of our staff worked tirelessly to brainstorm and birth this initiative.
So please sign up at dallasnews.com/ballot. You will find members of our staff out this fall at area universities, some Dallas Mavericks games, just to name a few places, to help you sign up.
I hope to come back to you after the Nov. 5 election to share that we have increased our voter participation rate and to say we have shed that old embarrassing distinction in favor of one that has bragging rights as one of the best states and regions in the country for high voter participation.
Help us and yourselves with that goal.