El Paso voters turned out in record numbers on the first day of early votingahead of theNov. 3 midterm election.
El Paso County surpassed its previous first-day early voting record for a midterm election on Monday, Oct. 19, when 17,500 voters cast ballots. That surpasses the 17,236 ballotscast on opening day in 2018, according to the El Paso County Elections Department.
The previous record was set during a closely watched 2018 election year in Texas, when Republican incumbent U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz faced a challenge from Democrat Beto O'Rourke in a race that drew national attention.
Early voting continues through Friday, Oct. 30, with Election Day scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 3.
Other Texas counties see record-breaking turnout
In addition to El Paso, other counties also set records for turnout on the first
day of early voting, including Harris County, with more than 104,000 voters, according to the Harris County Elections Department. Dallas County also set a record, with 76,079 voters casting ballots on Oct. 19, WFAA reported, citing Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins.
Natassia Paloma may be reached at npaloma@gannett.com, @NatassiaPaloma on X, natassia_paloma on Instagram, and Natassia Paloma on Facebook.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso early voting tops record set during Cruz-O'Rourke 2018 race
