This Morning I Voted After Trying To Get Texas To Let An Elderly Lady Vote For Beto

I knew when I exited Texas early in October that if all went as planned I would be back in Texas in time to vote on the last day of Early Voting.

And so I did so today.

This is the last day of Early Voting, isn't it? Or am I erroneous in that assumption?

No line waiting to vote in the Sikes Senter mall in which I do my voting, usually, unless the voting is relocated to some difficult to find location, which has happened twice since I have been voting in Wichita Falls.

There was only one person ahead of me, trying to vote, but the person who determines voting eligibility denied this person a ballot.

This was an elderly lady, looking to be at least 80, maybe in her 90s. She seemed to be firing on all cylinders. She said she had registered to vote online. The voting eligibility person told the elderly lady Texas had no online voter registering option.

I recollect that earlier in this election cycle there was some issue with people thinking they were registering to vote in Texas via an online method which was ruled not valid.

I asked the lady who was blocking the elderly lady from voting if she could vote via a provisional ballot, with her eligibility to vote to be determined later.

I was told there was no such provisional ballot means of voting.

I found this extremely offputting.

After voting I easily caught up with the elderly lady and asked why she was not already registered.

She said she'd move to Texas from Oklahoma five years ago. That she had been registered to vote in Oklahoma, and this was the first Texas election in which she felt compelled to vote.

And that she thought she had successfully registered to vote via an online sign up means.

Like I said, this lady fired on all cylinders, despite nearing being a century old.

I asked if her motivation had something to do with the Texas senate race.

Yes, she said, she wanted to vote for Beto. And that she finds Ted Cruz repulsive, as do most decent humans.

To deny this lady the ability to vote seems so wrong to me. How can the various states be so different regarding being allowed to vote? In Oregon if you are a citizen of the state, are 18 years old, you are mailed a ballot. You have to opt out of receiving a ballot, if you don't want one mailed to you.

To vote in Texas you have to go through a registration rigmarole. Then when you go to vote you have to show ID and your voter registration card. This time the ID was scanned by a new device I had not previously seen.

In Washington I was always mailed a ballot. I could opt to go to a polling place, or mail in my ballot.

In Arizona, my mom, who can not see, was mailed a ballot whilst I was there. I helped mom vote. Kyrsten Sinema for the win! And David Garcia.

It will be a relief to have this election over and done with. The mudslinging ads in Arizona were bizarre. And then the one night in New Mexico seeing New Mexico political ads, same thing. I am assuming since I am currently in a deeply red, backwards part of Texas, not much money is being spent on spewing mudslinging ads on the TV stations which serve this zone.

Though last night I thrice saw an absurdly stupid propaganda ad, aimed at morons, which ended with VOTE REPUBLICAN.