Absentee Voting (1968)

Duration: 2:15

Year Published: 1968

Sound: sound

Description: In this news segment for Houston’s KPRC-TV, an unidentified reporter speaks with Harris County residents who voted absentee in the upcoming election. A spokesman with the Harris County Clerk’s office then explains eligibility requirements for absentee voting. Later, students of Pershing Junior High School conduct a student government election. Registered voters who were unable to vote on Election Day could cast their ballot early, either in person or by mail. During the 1968 election, in-person absentee voting was open in Texas from October 16 to November 1. Harris County had only one absentee polling location: an old fire station in Houston. If casting an absentee ballot by mail, voters either had to sign an affidavit swearing to their being outside the county on election day or include a doctor’s note confirming they were physically unable to go to the polls.