2026 Election Center
Dates, the offices on your ballot, where to vote and what to bring. Facts only — no endorsements, no ratings, no political advertising.
PolkTX is not an election authority. Every date and rule on this page comes from the Polk County Clerk or the Texas Secretary of State and links back to them. Where anything here disagrees with the county, the county is right.
Key dates
All dates are for the November 3, 2026 general election.
Sources · 6
Dates confirmed 2026-09-07 against the Texas Secretary of State, whose voter FAQ names October 5, 2026 as the registration deadline for the November 3, 2026 election; early voting October 19–30 and the October 23 mail application deadline follow the statutory count from Election Day. Voter rules on this page are the county's and the state's own wording, condensed, with each item naming which. Candidates and races are read off the county's official sample ballots, published October 2026 and checked 2026-10-19; Election Day vote centers come from the county's notice of election (see the locations note). The county's official documents govern over anything here.
- Polk County Elections, County Clerkread 9/7/26
- Polk County current voter ID regulationsread 9/7/26
- Polk County voter registrationread 9/7/26
- Polk County ballot by mailread 9/7/26
- Polk County voters with special needsread 9/7/26
- Texas Secretary of State voter FAQread 9/7/26
What's on your ballot
Every race on Polk County's November ballot, read off the county's official sample ballot.
Take a checklist with you
39 races is a lot to work through standing in a booth. Pick your candidate in each race, print the list and carry it in. It is a checklist, not a ballot, and it prints saying so.
- County JudgeUnopposedLarry Pfeil
- Judge, County Court at LawUnopposedTom Brown
- District ClerkUnopposedMonica Richards Goodson
- County ClerkMargie West · Ida Bencomo
- County TreasurerUnopposedTerri L. Williams
- Criminal District AttorneyUnopposedShelly Bush Sitton
- County Commissioner, Precinct No. 2UnopposedJay Stutts
- County Commissioner, Precinct No. 4UnopposedJerry Cassity
- Justice of the Peace, Precinct No. 1UnopposedTerri Lynne Mayer
- Justice of the Peace, Precinct No. 2UnopposedSarah Rasberry
- Justice of the Peace, Precinct No. 3UnopposedRobert "Dooley" Johnson
- Justice of the Peace, Precinct No. 4UnopposedJamie Richardson
Polk County is the whole electorate for these. The names came out of the county’s March primary and May runoff, and the official sample ballot carries exactly the same names. Commissioner and Justice of the Peace races appear only on ballots in the voting precincts listed. Commissioner precincts 1 and 3 are not on the ballot this year.
- Livingston ISD Board of TrusteesAndrew Boyce · Lorine Jefferson · John Allen Slocomb · Howard Smith · Helen Murphy Wiggins · Kevin Grimm · Devan Shannon · Merek Brister
Eight candidates for four seats. Voters inside the district may vote for none, one, two, three or four. The county prints this race only on ballots marked “ILV” for Livingston ISD: 18 of its 39 ballot styles.
- Leggett ISD Board of TrusteesVicki Russell · Robert Nowlin · Ra’shod Jefferson · Sharlon Jackson · Jason McDonald · Tristan Batchelor · Taylor Jackson · Armando Diosdado · Angelina Pantel
Nine candidates for three seats. Voters inside the district may vote for none, one, two or three. It appears only on ballots marked “ILG”, in voting precincts 8, 9, 11 and 14.
- Chester ISD Board of TrusteesJosh Clarke · Ross Toler · Jesse Gay · Bryan Martin · Amber Davis · Brittany Neal
Six candidates for four seats. Voters inside the district may vote for none, one, two, three or four. It appears only on ballots marked “ICH”, in voting precincts 9, 10 and 11.
- United States SenatorKen Paxton · James Talarico · Ted Brown
- United States Representative, District 10Chris Gober · Caitlin Rourk
- GovernorGreg Abbott · Gina Hinojosa · Pat Dixon
- Lieutenant GovernorDan Patrick · Vikki Goodwin · Anthony Cristo · Kevin McCormick
- Attorney GeneralMayes Middleton · Nathan Johnson · Tom Oxford
- Comptroller of Public AccountsDon Huffines · Sarah Eckhardt · V. Alonzo Echavarria-Garza · Shehla Faizi
- Commissioner of the General Land OfficeDawn Buckingham · Benjamin Flores · Neill Snider
- Commissioner of AgricultureNate Sheets · Clayton Tucker · Austin R. Kelly
- Railroad CommissionerBo French · Jon Rosenthal · Arthur DiBianca
- Chief Justice, Supreme Court of TexasJimmy Blacklock · Maggie Ellis
- Justice, Supreme Court, Place 2 (unexpired term)James P. Sullivan · Chari Kelly
- Justice, Supreme Court, Place 7Kyle Hawkins · Kristen Hawkins
- Justice, Supreme Court, Place 8Brett Busby · Gisela D. Triana
- Judge, Court of Criminal Appeals, Place 3Thomas Smith · Okey Anyiam · Mark Ash
- Judge, Court of Criminal Appeals, Place 4Kevin Patrick Yeary · Audra Riley
- Judge, Court of Criminal Appeals, Place 9John Messinger · Holly Taylor
- Member, State Board of Education, District 8Audrey G. Young · Dana Van De Walker
- State Senator, District 3Trent Ashby · Bobby Tillman
- State Representative, District 9Rocky Thigpen · Shelley Tatum
- Chief Justice, 15th Court of Appeals DistrictScott Brister · Jerry Zimmerer
- Justice, 15th Court of Appeals District, Place 2Scott K. Field · Tom Baker
- Justice, 15th Court of Appeals District, Place 3April Farris · Marc M. Meyer
- Chief Justice, 9th Court of Appeals DistrictUnopposedScott Golemon
- District Judge, 258th Judicial DistrictUnopposedTravis Kitchens
Polk County votes on these alongside voters in other counties. Every name below is read off Polk County’s official sample ballot, in the order the ballot lists them. U.S. Senator, Governor and Lieutenant Governor also carry a line for a write-in candidate.
All 93 names in 39 races are read off Polk County's official sample ballots for November 3, checked October 19. No constitutional amendments or local propositions are on this ballot. Commissioner, justice of the peace and school board races appear only in some voting precincts — find your precinct's sample ballot ↗.
Where to vote
Early voting runs October 19–30. Election Day is November 3, 7 AM to 7 PM.
Polk County runs countywide vote centers, so during early voting you may use any of these whatever precinct you live in. Locations and hours are from Polk County's own Notice of General Election, issued August 31 and signed by County Judge Sydney Murphy.
My Voter Portal ↗
The Secretary of State's own lookup. Enter your name and date of birth and it returns your registration status, your precinct and your polling place.
Polk County Elections ↗
The November notice of election, the official sample ballots, the mail ballot application and, after November 3, the results.
Schelana Hock, County Clerk
101 W Mill Street, Suite 265, Livingston, TX 77351
12 countywide vote centers. Any registered Polk County voter may vote at any of them, whatever precinct you live in. Listed as the county prints them in its own Notice of General Election.
Sources · 6
UPDATED 2026-10-14 FROM THE COUNTY'S OWN NOTICE. Polk County has now published its Notice of General Election for November 3, 2026 (issued August 31, signed by County Judge Sydney Murphy) and its Order of Election for county officers (issued August 25). Both are scans with no text layer and were read off the page image. The notice names the same main early voting location and the same two branch sites this page already carried, and the same hours on every day but one. ELECTION DAY: the notice lists twelve countywide vote centers, all open 7 AM to 7 PM, where any registered Polk County voter may vote; they are reproduced here as printed. CORRECTED 2026-10-14: this page used to show October 25 as “11 AM – 5 PM or 1 PM – 7 PM”, because the City of Livingston's order and Livingston ISD's order disagreed, and it said Election Day locations were not published. The county is the early voting clerk for this election and its own notice gives October 25 as 1 PM to 6 PM — which matches neither earlier order — and the same hours were read aloud at the October 13 Commissioners Court meeting. The county's notice governs. The city's order wrote Corrigan's ZIP as 77539 and gave the Onalaska site as 14115; the county's notice gives 75939 and 14111, which this page already used. Confirm your own registration through the Secretary of State's My Voter Portal before you go.
- Polk County Elections, County Clerkread 9/7/26
- Polk County current voter ID regulationsread 9/7/26
- Polk County voter registrationread 9/7/26
- Polk County ballot by mailread 9/7/26
- Polk County voters with special needsread 9/7/26
- Texas Secretary of State voter FAQread 9/7/26
What to know before you go
Every item here is the county's or the state's own rule, condensed, with the authority named.
- One photo ID. Any one of these seven:
- Texas driver's license
- Texas Election ID Certificate
- Texas personal ID card
- Texas handgun license
- U.S. citizenship certificate with photo
- U.S. military ID with photo
- U.S. passport (book/card)
- No way to get one? You can still vote. Sign a Reasonable Impediment Declaration at the polls and show one of: voter registration certificate, original certified birth certificate, current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck. Left your ID at home doesn't count. If you have it, you have to use it.
- Your ballot checklist, if you made one. Make it here →
- Help, if you need it. If you can't read or mark the ballot, or communicate in another language or in sign language, you may bring a person of your choice to help you. That can't be your employer or a union officer. With a mobility problem, ask the clerk about voting ahead of the line.
Texas requires one of seven photo IDs to vote in person: a Texas driver's license, Texas Election ID Certificate, Texas personal ID card, Texas handgun license, U.S. citizenship certificate with photo, U.S. military ID with photo, or a U.S. passport, book or card. If you are 18 to 69 it may be expired by up to four years. If you are 70 or older it may be expired for any length of time, as long as it is otherwise valid.
A voter who cannot reasonably obtain one of the seven can sign a Reasonable Impediment Declaration at the polling place and show a supporting document instead — a voter registration certificate, an original certified birth certificate, a current utility bill, a bank statement, a government check, or a paycheck. Forgetting your ID at home is not the same thing: if you still have it, you have to use it.
Tell an election official if you need help voting. You do not have to prove a disability. Anyone who cannot read or write, has a physical disability that prevents reading or marking a ballot, or communicates in a language other than English or in sign language may be assisted — by any person of the voter's choosing who is not an election worker, by two election workers on Election Day, or by one during early voting. Your employer, their agent, and a union officer or agent may not assist you.
A voter with a mobility problem may be accepted for voting ahead of others in line. Ask the clerk at your polling site — the county publishes this as its Notice of Voting Order Priority.
Polk County votes on the HART Verity Touch system, with Verity Access available at every location for voters who are blind, have limited vision, or have limited dexterity. The county states it is ADA-compliant and certified by the Texas Secretary of State. It is at every early voting site and every Election Day site in the county.
Registration takes effect 30 days after the registrar accepts it, so October 5, 2026 is the last day for this election. You must be a U.S. citizen, a resident of the county, and 18 by Election Day — you may apply at 17 years and 10 months. If you moved within the county and did not update your registration, you may be able to vote at your old precinct; if you moved to a new county after the deadline, ask about a limited ballot.
In Texas you may vote by mail only if you are 65 or older, disabled, out of the county for the whole voting period, or confined in jail but otherwise eligible. The Polk County Clerk does not send applications or ballots to anyone who has not asked. Your application must reach the office by the close of business 11 days before Election Day.
Sources · 6
Dates confirmed 2026-09-07 against the Texas Secretary of State, whose voter FAQ names October 5, 2026 as the registration deadline for the November 3, 2026 election; early voting October 19–30 and the October 23 mail application deadline follow the statutory count from Election Day. Voter rules on this page are the county's and the state's own wording, condensed, with each item naming which. Candidates and races are read off the county's official sample ballots, published October 2026 and checked 2026-10-19; Election Day vote centers come from the county's notice of election (see the locations note). The county's official documents govern over anything here.
- Polk County Elections, County Clerkread 9/7/26
- Polk County current voter ID regulationsread 9/7/26
- Polk County voter registrationread 9/7/26
- Polk County ballot by mailread 9/7/26
- Polk County voters with special needsread 9/7/26
- Texas Secretary of State voter FAQread 9/7/26
The law behind all of this
If you would rather read the rule than take our word for it.
PolkTX does not endorse candidates, publish voting records or ratings, or accept political advertising. This section is never sponsored. Candidate answers, when we publish them, appear exactly as submitted. Results are unofficial until canvassed.