Early voting in the primary elections is underway across the Rio Grande Valley.

In Starr County, election officials say an increased number of candidates has caused a problem at polling sites.

For Clarissa Gonzalez it's about fair representation.

"What we're asking for is for it to be uniform," Gonzalez said.

Gonzalez is running for Starr County Commissioner Precinct 2. She's the only name on the Republican Party ticket in March. In November, she'll have a Democratic challenger.

Despite running unopposed, Gonzalez can campaign during the primary election. She says last week she tried setting up a table at the La Rosita polling site.

"We were told, no, it's going to be on a first come, first served basis. But by that time, the people that had set-up shop hours even before the precinct offices closed had already chosen the spots," Gonzalez said.

Channel 5 News reached out to the Starr County Election Department to clarify the rules. They said it's up to the owner of the parking lot, in this case Precinct 1, to accommodate electioneers.

"And it's always worked, until now," Starr County Elections Administrator Armandina Martinez said.

Martinez believes increased voter turnout and more candidates on the ballot are creating limited space this election.

"We want to accommodate everyone, but with the amount of candidates that we have, with the amount of races that are on our ballot, it's really hard for us to accommodate everyone," Martinez said.

In the current 2026 primary election, there are six candidates on the Republican ticket, while there are 25 candidates running as Democrats.

In 2024, three Republicans ran and only 18 Democrats; a difference of 10 fewer spaces.

The elections administrator says they are looking at a new location that will have more space. They hope to have the new spot selected by November.

A change that candidates like Gonzalez are looking forward to.

"So that people and candidates in my position or in any position don't have to go through what we went through this past week," Gonzalez said.

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