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Since *everyone* is spending this week reliving their 2020 accomplishments, we feel compelled to do the same.
Between the Harris County Clerk’s Office (led by @DTrautman, then interim clerk @CGHollins) and the new Elections Administration office (led by @LongoriaTX), our team administered FIVE elections in 2020.
The presence of COVID19 meant that this year’s elections had to be safe for all voters. We began implementing new safety practices this summer, including PPE for election workers, hand sanitizing stations and spreading out voting machines: https://www.harrisvotes.com/safe
We increased the number of Voting Centers. In 2016, there were 46 for Early Voting and 750 for Election Day. In 2020, there were 122 for Early Voting and more than 800 on Election Day.
Voters in Harris County can vote anywhere. This year, that included @ToyotaCenter, @NRGPark, @BBVAStadium. Not to mention we are the first county to set up a Voting Center in a gay bar. Thanks again, @BUDDYSHouston.
We also opened the first Voting Center INSIDE the @TXMedCenter, which employs tens of thousands of Harris County’s healthcare workers. During a pandemic, we wanted to make it easy for them to cast their vote.
Aside from the initial excitement of the first days of Early Voting, there were very few lines during the 2020 fall election. On Election Day: NO LINES. That was the plan and the plan worked.
We believe you shouldn’t have to give up hours of your day to vote, nor should you have to gather in a long line during a global pandemic, and it was our responsibility to make that happen.
One of the innovations we employed this year was Drive-Thru Voting, which was extremely popular with voters, and less popular with people who are afraid of things that are popular with voters: https://communityimpact.com/houston/lake-houston-humble-kingwood/election/2020/10/17/drive-thru-voting-locations-in-harris-county-see-greater-numbers-than-in-person-despite-challenges/
Another was 24-Hour Voting for one night only. It was a hit with shift workers: https://www.texasmonthly.com/politics/harris-county-24-hour-voting/
We began this summer amassing an amazing team of more than 11,000 election workers for the fall election to accommodate the expansion of our voting centers. We will never be done thanking them for their hard work this year: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Harris-County-s-ambitious-election-plan-calls-15597989.php
