In anticipation of the 2022 election, Austin County Elections Official Kim Rinn is working hard to ensure the next generation of voters is educated about the importance of voting.

Rinn will be going to Sealy and Bellville High School to educate students about voter registration and the importance of voting.

“We are trying to get out there and encouraging the younger people to get out and vote,” Rinn said. “We will be discussing how to vote, the measures that you are voting on, who our elected officials currently are and the importance of voting and not just registering to vote but also voting.” Students will learn about the significant impact that low voter turnout can have, Rinn said. “I have been doing this since I started at Bellville ISD. I haven’t at Sealy ISD, so this will be my first year. I had originally reached out to one of the teachers, then COVID hit,” Rinn said. “We were going to do it a few years back, then we just never got back to it.” Through this opportunity, students get a glimpse of how voting will be conducted for them in the future. “We are going to introduce a mock election to them and they will actually get to use the voting equipment that we use for our county,” Rinn said. Another way that Rinn aims to encourage residents to vote is by keeping the Austin County Elections website updated to include everything from polling locations to posting election results.

“This website is one place that everybody has the ability to go to and find everything,” Rinn said. “We just encourage voter participation.”

One early voting location is at the WE Hill Community Center in Sealy and another at the Austin County Annex in Bellville. “Those will run for two weeks. We are also going to be open on Saturday, Oct. 22. We don’t usually do Saturday early voting. We are opening our locations early from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.,” Rinn said. “It’s not something we have done in the past but we are going to open up on that Saturday for folks who don’t make it in town or work out of town.” When it comes to election day, Rinn said Austin County residents could vote at any open polling location. A list of polling locations and other frequently asked information is available on the election website.

“We also get a lot of questions on sample ballots which we have copies of on the website. There is a lot of helpful information that I try to keep updated,” Rinn said. At the state level, ‘SOS 101’ is a series of videos produced by Texas Secretary of State John Scott to educate voters about election administration in Texas in advance of the 2022 general election.

A quick overview of the voter registration process in Texas is provided by Scott in the first SOS 101 video. He discussed how eligible Texans can register to vote, how county voter registrars process voter registration applications, and how voter rolls are kept accurate in all of Texas’ 254 counties. Additionally, Secretary Scott meets with Brazos County Elections Administrator Trudy Hancock to discuss voter registration.

“Today, you’ll be learning about one of your most important civic duties as a Texas voter - registering to vote,” Scott says in the video. “Whether you’re registering to vote for the first time or need to update your information on your record, make sure and visit VoteTexas.gov and select ‘Voter Registration’ to learn everything you need to know about voter registration in Texas.”

Texas voters are reminded that the registration deadline for the Nov. 8 general election is Oct. 11.