Every candidate
gets the same page.
If your name is on the Harris County ballot, you are invited to submit to the Houston Voters Guide. It is free, it is nonpartisan, and every candidate in your race receives the identical questions, the same character limit, and the same deadline.
Your responses publish on HoustonVotersGuide.org, on Vote411.org, across our social channels, and in the printed guide carried by libraries, schools, civic organizations, and local media. For many down-ballot races, this is the only place a voter will find anything about you at all.
Four steps. Most candidates finish in about fifteen minutes.
Open your personalized link
Every candidate receives a unique link and security code by email from Vote411. The link is tied to your race and cannot be shared or reused.
Answer the questions
Responses are limited to [X] characters including spaces and punctuation. The form counts as you type. You may skip any question, and you can return to edit until the deadline.
Upload your headshot
Head and shoulders, plain background, no logos or text overlays. Full requirements are below.
Submit — then log back in and check your profile
Reopen your link and look at your published profile. Confirm your photo is visible and your last answer isn't cut off at the character limit. This is the step candidates skip, and it is the one that costs them.
Your photo is yours to verify
In the March primary, a number of candidates were published without a photo because the upload did not attach and no one went back to check. The guide prints what the profile shows.
What we need
- Head and shoulders only, facing the camera
- Plain or uncluttered background
- Color or black and white
- JPG or PNG
What won't work
- Campaign logos, text overlays, or watermarks
- Borders or heavy filters
- Group photos — you should be the only person in frame
- Screenshots or low-resolution files
If it won't upload, or won't display
Email the file to votersguide@lwvhouston.org with your full name and the office you're seeking, and we will attach it for you — before the print deadline.
No candidate, campaign, or party has input into our questions.
The League of Women Voters of Houston does not endorse, oppose, or rate candidates. Questions are finalized before any candidate is contacted, and every candidate in a race receives the identical set — same wording, same order, same character limit.
Proposed
Questions for each race are submitted by our Voters Guide Committee and a Community Advisory Panel of Harris County residents.
Ranked
The full committee reviews and ranks every proposed question for every race.
Selected
The highest-ranked questions are finalized before invitations go out to candidates.
Published
Answers appear word for word as submitted. No candidate sees another's answers before publication.
What we do, and what we never do
We do
- Publish your responses exactly as you submit them
- Give every candidate in a race the same questions, space, and deadline
- Offer participation free of charge to all candidates
- List your name in ballot order whether or not you respond
We never
- Edit, shorten, paraphrase, or rewrite your answers
- Fact-check, verify, or research your claims
- Endorse, oppose, rank, or rate any candidate or party
- Charge a fee or sell better placement to anyone
Two limits worth knowing
Responses containing off-topic content, inappropriate language, or personal attacks may be replaced with: “Response not in keeping with LWV Guidelines.” Please avoid bold, italics, underlining, hyphens, symbols, bullets, and lists — they may be altered to fit the print layout. Candidates agree not to submit libelous statements or copyrighted material without permission.
The press date is the one that can't move.
First-round questionnaire deadline. Submit by 11:59 p.m. CT.
Final deadline for candidates to be added to the ballot. Independents and write-ins certified by this date are contacted directly and have until August 20.
The printed guide closes at 11:59 p.m. CT. Responses received after this date cannot be added to the print edition. Candidates who have not responded are listed with the note “No Response Received.”
Printed guides go out citywide. The online guide publishes at HoustonVotersGuide.org and on Vote411.org.
Election Day.
Candidate FAQ
I didn't receive my invitation email, or I lost my security code.
Check your spam and promotions folders first — the invitation arrives from Vote411. If it isn't there, email votersguide@lwvhouston.org or call 713-784-2923 with your full name and the office you're seeking, and we'll resend your personalized link.
Is there any cost to participate?
No. The Houston Voters Guide is free for every candidate. We do not sell placement, and no candidate can pay for better position, more space, or additional coverage.
Can I edit my answers after I submit?
Yes, until the deadline. Log back in through your personalized link and update your responses. After the print cutoff, changes may still be possible online but cannot be reflected in the printed guide.
What happens if I don't respond?
Your name still appears in the guide, in ballot order, with the note “No Response Received” where your answers would be — next to the candidates in your race who did respond.
Can my campaign staff complete it for me?
Yes. Anyone you authorize may fill out the questionnaire on your behalf. You are responsible for the content submitted under your name.
Do I have to answer every question?
No. You may skip any question. Skipped questions appear blank in the guide.
My opponent's answer contains something false. Will you correct it?
No. The League does not edit, verify, or fact-check responses. The guide exists to give voters candidates' own words, unfiltered — including where candidates disagree. You are welcome to address the substance within your own responses.
I'm running unopposed. Should I still participate?
Yes. Voters still look you up, and unopposed candidates appear in the guide alongside everyone else.
Can I submit my responses in Spanish?
Contact votersguide@lwvhouston.org and we'll walk you through the options for your race.
I just got on the ballot. Am I too late?
If you were certified by the August 17 ballot deadline, you have until August 20 to submit. Email us as soon as possible so we can get your link to you with time to spare.
Who is the League of Women Voters of Houston?
A nonpartisan 501(c)(3) civic organization that has provided Houston-area voters with election information for decades. We never support or oppose any candidate or political party.
Tell us today, not at 11:58 p.m.
Wrong email on file, photo won't upload, link won't open, security code missing — all of it is fixable, but not on deadline night.
votersguide@lwvhouston.org
713-784-2923
Include your full name and the office you're seeking — it helps us find your record fast.
The League of Women Voters of Houston does not support or oppose any candidate or political party. The integrity of our Voters Guide depends on providing unbiased election information to all Houston-area voters, and our commitment to nonpartisanship drives every decision we make as an organization.
The Houston Voters Guide is produced in partnership with the League of Women Voters Education Fund's VOTE411.org.
