Voting by Mail in Hood County Resets Every January

Not everyone can vote by mail in Texas, and Hood County goes by the state's short list: you have to be 65 or older, have a disability, be confined in jail but otherwise eligible, or expect to be out of the county through both early voting and Election Day. If one of those fits, you can request a mail ballot from the Elections office at 1410 W. Pearl St. in Granbury.

The catch that trips people: the annual application is only good for the calendar year you filed it. Reapply each January or your mail ballot quietly stops coming. You can send the application by mail, email, or fax — but if you fax or email it, the county still needs the signed paper original in the mail within four business days, or it doesn't count.

Deadlines for a specific election are tighter than the registration cutoff, so don't wait until the last week. The elections staff at the Pearl Street office (817-579-3200) can tell you the exact date your application has to be in hand for the next ballot.