The following is from the County Clerk‘s office:
IN-PERSON EARLY VOTING BEGINS FOR MARCH 2 PRIMARY ELECTIONS: STRONG TURNOUT WILL NOT SURPRISE
Houston, TX, – Early voting by personal appearance for the upcoming Democratic and Republican Primary Elections in Harris County is set to begin, Tuesday, Feb. 16th and continue until Feb. 26th.
“In the aftermath of the 2008 primary elections, a strong turnout during this year’s primaries will not be surprising. But, without the presidential contest at the top of the ballot, it will be difficult to replicate our record turnout of two years ago of almost 600,000 voters,” said Harris County Clerk Beverly Kaufman, the chief elections officer of the County. “Voting during the in-person early voting period and by mail may be telling.”
As of Thursday, Feb 11th, the Harris County Clerk’s office had responded to 25,747 ballot-by-mail requests. The current 2010 ballot-by-mail requests are short of the 2008 March primaries overall total of 29,970. But, the current total is higher than the 2006 primary elections total of 21,097, the last non-presidential year primary elections in the County. The ballot-by-mail application deadline for the 2010 primary election cycle is Feb. 23rd.
A report of the total number of persons processed for voting at each early voting site during the early voting period and the mail ballot requests processed will be posted on a daily basis on the Clerk’s election page, www.harrisvotes.com, after the polls close starting Feb. 16th.
The hours of service at the county’s early voting locations are as follows: Tuesday to Friday, Feb, 16th to 19th, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; Saturday, Feb. 20th, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.; Sunday, Feb. 21st, 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.; Feb. 22th to 26th, 7:00 am to 7:00 p.m.
In total for the March 2, 2010 Democratic Party and Republican Party Primary Elections there are thirty-seven early voting locations in Harris County:
Harris County Early Voting Locations
(* Indicates Change in Location)
1. Main Office: Harris County Administration Bldg., 1001 Preston, 1st Floor, 77002
2. Moody Park: Moody Park Community Center, 3725 Fulton, 77009
3. * Kashmere: Kashmere Multi-Service Center, 4802 Lockwood Dr., 77026
4. Downtown-East: Ripley House, 4410 Navigation Blvd., 77011
5. Southeast Houston: H.C.C.S. Southeast College, Learning Hub, 6815 Rustic, 77087
6. Palm Center: Justice of the Peace/Constable Entry, 5300 Griggs Road, 77021
7. Astrodome Area: Fiesta Mart, Inc., 8130 Kirby Drive, 77054
8. Neartown: Metropolitan Multi-Service Center, 1475 W. Gray, 77019
9. Northeast Houston: Northeast Multi-Service Center, 9720 Spaulding, 77016
10. Galena Park: Galena Park Branch Library, 1500 Keene Street, Galena Park, 77547
11. Hobby Area: I.B.E.W. Hall #66, 4345 Allen Genoa Road, Pasadena, 77504
12. Sunnyside: Sunnyside Multi-Service Center, 4605 Wilmington, 77051
13.* S. Houston Area: Townwood Park, 3403 Simsbrook, 77045
14. SW. Houston: Bayland Park Community Center, 6400 Bissonnet (near Hillcroft), 77074
15. Near West Side: Tracy Gee Community Center, 3599 Westcenter Drive, 77042
(One block East of Sam Houston Tollway)
16. Spring Branch: Trini Mendenhall Sosa Comm. Center, 1414 Wirt Road, 77055
17. Acres Homes: Acres Homes Multi-Service Center, 6719 W. Montgomery Road, 77091
18. North: Hardy Senior Center, 11901 West Hardy Road, 77076
19. Humble: Octavia Fields Branch Library, 1503 South Houston Ave., Humble, 77338
20. Kingwood: Humble ISD Instructional Support Ctr., 4810 Magnolia Cove, Kingwood, 77345
21. Wallisville Road: North Channel Branch Library, 15741 Wallisville Road, 77049
22. Baytown: Baytown Community Center, 2407 Market Street, Baytown, 77520
23. * Pasadena: Harris County Courthouse Annex #25, 7330 Spencer Highway, Pasadena, 77505
24. Clear Lake: Freeman Branch Library, 16616 Diana Lane, 77062
25. Alief: Henington-Alief Regional Library, 7979 South Kirkwood, 77072
26. West Houston: Lac Hong Square, 6628 Wilcrest Dr., 77072
27. * Far W. Houston: Nottingham Park, 14205 Kimberley Lane, 77079
28. Far West/Katy: Franz Road Storefront, 19818 Franz Road, Katy, 77449
29. Bear Creek: Bear Creek Park Community Center, 3055 Bear Creek Dr. at Patterson Rd., 77084
30. Jersey Village: City of Jersey Village-City Hall, 16327 Lakeview Drive, Jersey Village, 77040
31. Tomball: Tomball Public Works Building, 501 B James St., Tomball, 77375
32. * Cypress Creek: Champion Forest Baptist Church, Multi-Purpose Building
15555 Stuebner-Airline Dr., 77069
33. Far North: Ponderosa Fire Station No. 1, 17061 Rolling Creek Drive, 77090
34. Cypress: Cypress Top Park, 26026 Hempstead Highway, Cypress, 77429
35. George Bush Park: Glen Cheek Education Building, 16002 Westheimer Parkway, 77082
36. * Lone Star College: University Park, Visitors Center, 20515 State Hwy 249, 77070
37. Crosby: Crosby ISD Administration Building, 706 Runneburg Road, Crosby, 77532
For more information regarding the early voting locations, voters may visit www.harrisvotes.com or call 713.755.6965.
You can see a map of the locations here (PDF). Note the changes to some of them. I voted at the Power Center in 2008 because lines were so long at all of the places I was used to going, but that’s not being used this election for the South Houston location. If you’ve never voted in a primary before, remember that you can show up and vote in either one, but only in one. Just say which one you intend to vote in and you’ll be set. Voting in a primary means that you cannot sign someone’s petition to appear on the ballot as an independent, and it means you may only vote in that party’s runoff. If you do not vote in the primary, you may still vote in either party’s runoff, though again you must pick only one. Happy voting!