18-year-olds in Texas are massively under-registered heading into the midterms. Spotlight on Bexar County reveals wide disparities among school districts
Executive Summary
Nationally, as of the spring of 2026, only 42% of 18-year-olds were registered to vote, a rate that has increased to 45% as of this summer. In comparison, 82% of Americans ages 45-79 are registered, a rate that has stayed constant through this period.
This report focuses on Texas. As described more fully below, Texas is one of the most difficult states in which to register to vote, and its voter registration rate for 18-year-olds, who must navigate the Texas regulations, reflects these challenges.
In Texas, as of the spring of 2026, the most recent date for which we have data, only 38% of 18-year-olds are registered, compared to 81% of Texans ages 45-79. Within Texas, rates vary widely, with some counties reaching above 90% and others below 30%. At least one county is even below 10%.
We also focused specifically on school districts within Bexar County, where San Antonio is located. Bexar County is in the bottom third of Texas counties with a registration rate for 18-year-olds of just 35%. Within the county, school district registration rates range from 17% at the low end to above 90% at the high end.
This is the latest in a years-long series of reports issued by The Civics Center to draw attention to barriers to equal participation facing young people as they come of age.
In several past reports, we have shown variations among and within states and described policy and administrative challenges facing new voters as they seek to register for the first time.
Process and findings
The Civics Center tracks voter registration and turnout rates for 18-year-olds and analyzes policy impacts on those rates.
We rely on population data from the American Community Survey and official voter file data through a commercial vendor.
We are able to estimate voter registration rates for 18-year-olds at the state and local level, including counties and school districts. We create interactive visualizations to show and allow for exploration of the results.
We also track and analyze key laws and policies that impact youth voter registration, including pre-registration, online voter registration, registration deadlines and automatic voter registration.
Texas is one of the most restrictive states when it comes to voter registration
Based on our policy analysis, Texas is one of the most difficult states in which to register to vote. The state has no online voter registration, no automatic voter registration, no same-day registration, and no preregistration at age 16.
Regarding the registration deadline and preregistration laws, Texas policies are among the most limiting of any state. Young people cannot preregister to vote until they turn 17 years and 10 months. This narrow window before age 18 is the smallest duration of any state in the country. More than half of teens live in states where they can preregister by age 16 or earlier. 20% more live in states where they have at least one year before the first election in which they can register to vote.
Texas’s voter registration deadline is 30 days before Election Day, placing it among the states with the longest gap between registration and voting. The combination of the narrow window in which to preregister and the early registration deadlines places serious obstacles on young people who frequently move residences in the months leading to Election Day.
Texas also has onerous requirements for individuals and organizations seeking to run voter registration drives. In addition, a state law that requires high schools to assist with voter registration has gone largely unimplemented.
Texas has below average registration rates for 18-year-olds
Through our data methods, we are able to estimate voter registration rates for 39 states. Texas ranks 23rd among those states, with only 38% of 18-year-olds registered, compared to an average rate of 45% among all 39 states.
Voter registration rates for 18-year-olds vary widely among Texas counties
11 Texas counties in the state have registration rates for 18-year-olds above 70%. 32 Texas counties have registration rates for 18-year-olds below 30%.
Among the five most populous counties in the state, Harris, Dallas, Tarrant, Bexar, and Travis, none has a registration rate at 40% or above.
Within Bexar County, rates vary widely by school district
The registration rate for 18-year-olds in Bexar County is 35%, placing Bexar in the bottom third of all Texas counties.
Bexar County includes 19 school districts. We estimated the voter registration rate for 18-year-olds by school district. Registration rates for 18-year-olds range from 17.4% for San Antonio ISD at the low end to >90% for Alamo Heights ISD and Comal ISD at the high end. Also at the high end, above 70% are Boerne ISD and Medina Valley ISD. At the low end, below 30% are South San Antonio and Somerset.[1]
The results are shown here.
About The Civics Center
The mission of The Civics Center is to create the onramp for democracy, including voter registration for every high school in America. We believe in data as a force for motivation, organizing, and accountability, not just after-the-fact analysis.
In Bexar County, The Civics Center partners with Youth Do Vote, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization focused on youth in Bexar County. The work of Youth Do Vote is generously sponsored by Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc.
[1] The above list omits the three districts within the county that overlap with military bases. These are Fort Sam Houston, Lackland, and Randolph Field, all of which have exceptionally low rates, potentially due to the high mobility of military personnel and a practice of registering at the home where they resided prior to entering military service. Some school districts include territory in both Bexar County and a neighboring county. The rates for these districts are calculated for the school district as a whole, not simply the portion in Bexar County.