Lubbock County voters can now see the exact ballot they will receive, mark their choices on it and print a copy to carry into the voting booth, using a free new Elections 2026 guide from Lubbock Lights.
The guide is at LubbockLights.com/elections-2026, and it has its own red, white and blue tab at the top of every page on LubbockLights.com. Early voting begins Monday, Oct. 19, and runs through Friday, Oct. 30. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3.
“The purpose of this tool is to empower voters with information and give them something they can print and carry into the voting place with them,” said L. Scott Mann, publisher of Lubbock Lights.
What the guide does
- Shows your official sample ballot. The guide displays the Lubbock County Elections Office’s sample ballot for your Voting Precinct, page for page, so you see exactly the races and propositions on your ballot.
- Finds your ballot two ways. Type your home address, or type your three-digit Voting Precinct, which can be found on your voter registration card.
- Lets you mark it. Tap a candidate’s name to mark your sample ballot. Your choices collect in a list called My list.
- Prints two ways. Print My notes, a two-column list of every race on your ballot with your choice and party written under each one, or print the official ballot pages with your choices marked. You can also email the list to yourself.
- Shows every place to vote. All 21 early voting sites and all 36 Election Day vote centers appear on a full-width street map, with the list underneath, closest first, showing today’s hours and one-tap directions. Lubbock County voters may vote at any of them.
- Covers what to bring. The seven acceptable forms of photo ID and the supporting forms of ID for voters without one, in the Texas Secretary of State’s own words from VoteTexas.gov, plus the deadlines for voting by mail.
- Sends one reminder. Everyone who signs up gets a single email the evening before Election Day.
- Explains each race. A text version of the ballot notes open seats, incumbents and the declared write-in candidates for U.S. Senate, governor and lieutenant governor.
The guide lists every candidate on the ballot in the order the county prints them. Lubbock Lights is a nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom and endorses no candidate or proposition.
Your address stays private
When you look up your ballot by address, your phone sends the address straight to the U.S. Census Bureau’s public address finder, which returns a point on the map. Your phone then matches that point to the county’s precinct map and keeps only your precinct number. Lubbock Lights never sees your address, and the guide says so right beside the box. If the Census finder cannot place an address, your phone asks OpenStreetMap’s public finder the same way.
Opening the guide takes an email address. Lubbock Lights uses it to send the Election Day reminder and, if you leave the box checked, the Lubbock Lights newsletter. Every email has a one-click unsubscribe link.
How to use it on your phone, step by step
These steps are written for someone who has never used a tool like this. Take them one at a time. The red boxes in the pictures show where to tap.
Step 1: Open the guide
Open the web browser you normally use on your phone. On an iPhone that is usually Safari. On most other phones it is Chrome. Tap the address bar at the top, type lubbocklights.com/elections-2026 and tap Go.
You can also go to LubbockLights.com, tap the menu button (three short lines at the top of the page) and tap Elections 2026, the blue button with a white star.
Step 2: Type your email
Tap the white box under Email address. Type your email. Then tap the big blue Unlock my ballot button. You only do this once on each phone.
Step 3: Find your ballot
Slide your finger up the screen to scroll down to Find your exact ballot. Tap the box under Home address and type your house number, street and city, for example 1234 Main St, Wolfforth. Tap Find my ballot.
If you know your Voting Precinct, tap Use my Voting Precinct instead and type the three-digit number. It can be found on your voter registration card.
Step 4: Check that it found you
A line appears that begins Your ballot: Voting Precinct, followed by your precinct number and the address it matched. If it matched the wrong address, check the spelling and try again, or use your Voting Precinct.
Step 5: Mark your choices
Your official sample ballot appears below. Tap a candidate’s name to mark your sample ballot; the box beside it fills in black. Tap it again to erase it. Use the Page 2 and Page 3 buttons to see the rest of the ballot.
If the print is too small, tap Zoom in. Then slide your finger across the ballot to move around. Tap Fit to width to go back.
Step 6: Check your list
Below the ballot, My list shows every choice you have made, in ballot order. Your choices are saved on your phone, so they will still be there if you close the page and come back later on the same phone. To start over, tap Clear all. If you tap it by mistake, tap Undo in the message at the bottom of the screen.
Step 7: Print your cheat sheet
Tap Print my ballot cheat sheet. Pick one of two choices:
- My notes: a short, two-column list. Each race is in bold, with your choice and party on the line below. This is the easiest one to read.
- The official ballot: the county’s sample ballot pages with your choices marked, so your paper looks like the ballot in the booth.
A print window opens. Choose your printer and tap Print. No printer at home? Tap Email me my list and print it at a library, or ask a family member to print it for you.
Step 8: Find a place to vote
Keep scrolling down to Vote anywhere in the county. Tap Early voting or Election Day. A map of the county appears, with every place to vote marked by an orange dot. If you looked up your address, the map zooms to your neighborhood and the list under it shows the closest places first. Each one shows whether it is open right now.
Tap Google Maps or Apple Maps under any location for turn-by-turn directions. You can also tap an orange dot on the map to see that location’s address and hours.
Step 9: Before you go
Bring one acceptable photo ID and your printed cheat sheet. Texas prohibits the use of wireless communication devices within 100 feet of a voting station, which is why the paper copy matters. The What to bring section at the bottom of the guide lists the seven acceptable forms of photo ID and, for voters who do not have one and cannot reasonably obtain one, the supporting forms of ID, in the Secretary of State’s own words.
Key dates
- Early voting: Monday, Oct. 19, through Friday, Oct. 30. Every site is open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. each day, including Saturday, Oct. 24. Sunday, Oct. 25, hours are noon to 6 p.m.
- Mail ballot applications: must arrive at the Elections Office by Friday, Oct. 23.
- Election Day: Tuesday, Nov. 3, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at any of 36 vote centers.
The guide draws on the Lubbock County Elections Office’s sample ballots, polling place notices and precinct map, and the Texas Secretary of State’s certified ballot. Questions about your registration go to the Lubbock County Elections Office at (806) 775-1339. To report an error in the guide, write to Incoming@LubbockLights.com.
