Texas Retired Teachers Association (TRTA) members and supporters—IT’S TIME! Primary Election 2024 early voting continues this week through Friday, March 1. According to the Secretary of State’s office, statewide turnout through the first week of voting sits at 4.35%. Voter turnout in primary elections is often very low, so the impact of your vote will be amplified!
The success of the Proposition 9 campaign is due to the work TRTA members did to get out the vote. Your efforts won the day! Thanks to our spectacular results on Prop 9, people are now watching to see if retired educators will show up at the polls during election cycles.
If we are active and visible at the polls, we will be more successful in our future legislative advocacy efforts. This is especially true for the Primary Election.
These elections will be close. Every vote will matter! Voting is an investment in TRTA’s advocacy and our future successes in the public policy process.
While TRTA does not endorse candidates, members can tell others who they are voting for and why. Every incumbent running for reelection voted “FOR” retired educators to receive the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) and the supplemental check, as well as paying for those benefit enhancements in full. Incumbents have a pro-TRS track record.
TRTA members have a track record of voting and voting early! Please remember that most elections in Texas are decided during the primary election cycle. According to the Texas Tribune, only 18% of registered voters cast a ballot in the 2022 primaries. Voters—this means you—have the power!
Let’s Go Vote
EARLY VOTING LOCATIONS
Registered and eligible voters may vote at ANY early voting location located in their county of residence. Early voting locations are populated in the “My Voter Portal.” You can also contact the Early Voting Clerk for State and County Elections in your county for early voting locations. Polling location hours vary at each location, and we encourage you to verify those hours prior to voting.
Learn more about early voting in Texas here. You do not have to meet any special qualifications to vote early in person–if you are registered and qualified to vote on Election Day, you can also cast a ballot during the early voting period! For information about Voter IDs, please visit this link.
Don’t forget to bring along family members and friends to the polls with you! Send us your “I VOTED!” photos and we will post them on Facebook! Photos may be sent to info@trta.org.
CANDIDATE RESEARCH
You can retrieve a complete list of the candidates on your ballot by visiting www.trta.org/2024primary. Still not sure who to vote for? Ask a fellow retiree who they are voting for and why! You can also use the resources listed below to gather more information about candidates.
- Teach the Vote is a site operated by the Association of Texas Professional Educators (ATPE).
- The League of Women Voters provides nonpartisan voter guides in several languages.
Alternatively, for members who plan to meet candidates in person or attend public forums, the following questions may provide you with important feedback regarding their stance on issues affecting Texas public education retirees.
- Does he or she support the TRS defined benefit plan for all current and future Texas public education retirees?
- If elected, would he or she be willing to work with TRTA on benefit enhancements that protect and improve TRS retirement security?
- If elected, what will he or she do to maintain and improve funding for TRS-Care?
- If elected, will he or she support efforts to repeal the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO)?
THANK YOU!
Thank you for being a member of TRTA. We are asking members to renew their dues with TRTA if they have not done so already. If you know someone who is not a member, please invite them to join us!
