Katy-area voters will choose between Democrat James Talarico, Republican Ken Paxton and Libertarian Ted Brown for U.S. Senate on Nov. 3.

The race is certified on the statewide ballot, according to the Texas secretary of state's official certification. Because greater Katy stretches across Fort Bend, Harris and Waller counties, residents should confirm which county handles their registration and polling location, according to a Katy News voting guide.

Early voting runs Monday, Oct. 19, through Friday, Oct. 30. Fort Bend County polls are open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. each day of early voting except Oct. 25, when some locations will be closed and others open noon to 6 p.m., Fox 26 reported. Election Day polls open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Talarico, a Round Rock state representative first elected to the Texas House in 2018, serves on the Public Education, Juvenile Justice and Family Issues, and Calendars committees, according to his Texas House biography. A former public school teacher and type 1 diabetic, he passed legislation capping insulin copays at $25 a month in Texas and authored a bill to import lower-cost prescription drugs from Canada, his House biography states. Texas Monthly named him one of its Top 10 Best Legislators.

Paxton, the state attorney general, carried a Trump endorsement to Old Katy in May, drawing a standing-room-only crowd to Midway BBQ, Covering Katy reported. He was impeached by the Texas Legislature and later acquitted, the Associated Press reported.

The race is tight. A University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll conducted Sept. 25 through Oct. 5 showed Talarico at 50% and Paxton at 47% among 861 likely voters, within the poll's 3.3-point margin of error, USA Today reported. Independent likely voters in that poll preferred Talarico 69% to 11%. Suburban voters split 54% for Talarico and 44% for Paxton.

Outside spending has poured into the contest. The AP reported that Republican leadership and Elon Musk have invested more than $158 million against Talarico through the Senate Leadership Fund and Texas PAC. Musk also gave $10 million to Lone Star Liberty PAC, a group supporting Paxton, according to the AP.

On his campaign website, Talarico says he wants to lower property taxes, fix the power grid and restore abortion rights. He has called for requiring AI data centers to pay for their own energy infrastructure so costs are not passed to consumers. In an interview with CNBC in early September, Talarico called Texas "the epicenter of this data center crisis."

Paxton's campaign has focused on tax cuts, according to Houston Public Media. Brown, the Libertarian candidate, rounds out the ballot.

Voters can find their county's sample ballot through the Texas secretary of state's online directory.