Taylor County sets early-voting schedule, 19 election-day polling places and appoints judges for Nov. 5 general election

Taylor County’s elections office notified commissioners on Aug. 27 of the early-voting schedule and polling-place plan for the Nov. 5, 2024 general election. Early voting is scheduled to begin Monday, Oct. 21 and run through Friday, Nov. 1, with locations and hours adjusted to balance voter access and staff safety.

Elections Administrator Miss Reagan told the court the proposed early-voting plan includes six locations with the county elections office as the main site and five temporary branches in Abilene (including City Hall and multiple United Supermarkets). For the second week of early voting, the office proposed 12-hour days from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. (instead of 9 a.m.–9 p.m.) to facilitate staff operations.

For election day, Reagan presented 19 polling locations across the county. Two previously used locations — Oldham Lane Church and the Cesar Chavez Recreation Center — will not be available; replacement sites include the DoubleTree by Hilton downtown (ballroom space), First Church of the Nazarene (gym) and other churches with larger, accessible spaces. The court approved the early-voting locations and schedule and the election-day polling places by 5–0 votes. Commissioners also approved the appointment of presiding and alternate judges (party-submitted lists) and central-counting station presiding/alternate judges; staff emphasized mandatory training requirements for appointed judges.

Miss Reagan said the last day to register to vote for the Nov. 5 election is Oct. 7; the last day for receipt of ballot-by-mail requests is Oct. 25. She also said the elections office will publish location changes and notify voters online.

The court directed staff to post the approved locations and schedules on the county website and to continue outreach to voters in parts of the county with lower early-voting access.