Voting by mail in Starr County: who qualifies and the four-day catch

Voting by mail in Texas isn't open to everyone. You have to fit one of a handful of reasons. In Starr County the qualifying list is the standard one: you're 65 or older on Election Day, you're sick or disabled, you expect to give birth within three weeks either side of Election Day, you'll be out of the county the whole early-voting and Election-Day stretch, or you're confined in jail but still eligible to vote.

You can send the application by mail, by fax to 956-716-8222, or by email as a scanned attachment. Here's the part people miss: if you fax or email it, the original signed paper still has to physically reach the elections office within four business days. Skip that and the application doesn't count, no matter how early you hit send.

Deadlines shift with each election, so nail down the calendar first. The Elections Administration shares the building at 100 N. FM 3167 in Rio Grande City and can be reached at 956-716-4800.