Tuesday was the first day of early voting in the Texas primaries and Democratic turnout was high. Overall, first-day turnout increased from 38,441 in the 2014 midterms, to over 51,249 this year.
In Harris County, home of Houston, Democratic turnout was up 200 percent from 2014, while Republican turnout increased by 25 percent. And in Dallas County, Democratic first-day turnout grew 56 percent from 2014 to 2018, while Republican first-day turnout shrunk 19 percent.
For example, in the state’s largest county (Harris), the 2014 midterms saw 1,276 Democratic ballots cast on the first day of early voting, while this year 3,833 Democratic ballots were cast Tuesday. Even more promising is the increase in Democratic voters in exurban areas.
In Collin County north of Dallas, the first-day Democratic primary vote increased from 330 in 2014 to 1,021 on Tuesday. Also, there is an increase in Democratic votes in the state’s urban areas. In Harris (Houston), Dallas, and Travis (Austin) counties Tuesday’s totals surpassing not only the 2014 midterms, but the 2016 presidential election year.
Democratic senate candidate Beto O’Rourke is known for saying Texas is not a Red state—it’s a non voting state. Because voter turnout in Texas is dismally low across the board, it’s hard to tell whether voter apathy is the reason Texas is Red; but if these first-day numbers trend, things are looking positive for Dems in the Lone Star State.