ABC-7 Listens: Provisions available for El Paso County voters with disabilities
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- If you waited to cast your ballot on Election Day Nov. 5, the countdown is on. And El Paso County wants to make sure everyone of all abilities who wants to vote, can.
A viewer reached out to ABC-7 to let us know they were really impressed with an accommodation they witnessed at an early voting site, hadn't seen mention of it on the news, and hoped we could change that.
"I voted early at Arlington Park in Northeast El Paso. I was pleased to see that there were parking spaces set aside and portable voting machines rolled to the vehicle window of people who were challenged physically," Donna said in her email to share@kvia.com. "This allowed them to vote without the burden of waiting in lines and having to deal with using walkers and wheelchairs. I stood in line for about 45 minutes. I (was) ... not aware of how many other voting locations are doing this."
According to the county's election website, each polling place will provide an ADA-compliant voting system accessible to voters with disabilities. The county also offers an audio ballot specially for voters with vision or reading impairments. These provisions are ensured by the Texas Election Code.
You must tell an election worker you need assistance to vote. But you don't need proof of your disability.
Voters may be assisted by:
- Any person the voter chooses who is not an election worker;
- Two election workers on election day; or
- One election worker during early voting.
Voters MAY NOT be assisted by:
- Their employer;
- An agent of their employer; or
- An officer or agent of the union.
It is illegal for a person assisting the voter to:
- Try to influence the voter’s vote;
- Mark the voter’s ballot in a way other than the way they have asked; or
- Tell anyone how the voter voted.
There are many other provisions, including curbside voting. If you have any other questions you can call the County elections office at (915) 546-2154.
