Early voting gets underway Tuesday for Texas’ 2020 primary elections, the first of 11 straight days when voters can cast ballots before Election Day.

The Harris County Clerk’s Office is operating 52 voting locations from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. each day of early voting except Sunday, when polls will open at 1 p.m. and close at 6 p.m. Eligible voters in Harris County can cast ballots at any early voting site.

At stake are 228 pledged delegates in the Democratic presidential primary and, up and down the ballot, primaries for congressional, state and county races, including several in the Houston area that will serve as battleground districts in the general election. Voters also are expected to narrow the field of Democrats competing to take on Republican U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, with a runoff all but certain in the fractured primary.

Check out the Houston Chronicle’s Voter Guide for the 2020 primaries

Friday is the deadline to apply for a mail ballot, an option for those who are disabled, 65 years or older on Election Day, outside their home county during early voting and Election Day, or in jail but not convicted of a felony. The last day of early voting is Feb. 28, four days before Election Day on March 3.

Key races

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Aside from the prominent contests atop the ballot, both parties are watching several Harris County primaries intently, including the races for district attorney and county attorney, where incumbents Kim Ogg and Vince Ryan face spirited opposition. And in the election for Precinct 3 commissioner, both primaries have drawn a crowd in the battle to succeed retiring incumbent Steve Radack.

Harris County also will host a handful of key state House elections, including the Republican primary for House District 132 between Angelica Garcia, a shipping company executive who has been endorsed by Gov. Greg Abbott, and Mike Schofield, a former state representative who is looking to reclaim the seat he narrowly lost to state Rep. Gina Calanni, D-Katy, in 2018.

Other pivotal legislative contests include the Democratic primaries in House Districts 134 and 142, and primaries on each side of the aisle in House District 138, where Republican state Rep. Dwayne Bohac is not seeking re-election after winning in the last cycle by 47 votes.

Higher up the ballot are several hotly contested congressional races, including the GOP primary in Texas’ 7th Congressional District, represented by freshman U.S. Rep. Lizzie Fletcher, D-Houston. And in the 10th Congressional District, which covers ground from Austin to the west Harris County suburbs, three Democrats are battling it out for the nomination to take on Republican U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul.

In Texas’ 22nd Congressional District, both parties have contested primaries in the open race to succeed U.S. Rep. Pete Olson, a Sugar Land Republican who is not seeking re-election after six terms.

jasper.scherer@chron.com