82-Year-Old Texas Grandma Dies Days After Voting: Reports

An 82-year-old woman died after voting for the first time in her life, according to reports on Nov. 6.

Gracie Lou Phillips passed away on Nov. 5 after casting her ballot on Nov. 1 for the midterm elections. She took her portable oxygen tank with her to the polling station in Grand Prairie, NBC5 reported.

Her granddaughter, Michelle Phillips, said her grandmother hadn’t voted due to being busy. “She finally registered to vote for the first time in her life,” said Phillips. “She kept telling everybody ‘I’m voting. I’m going to vote this year, and my vote counts.’”

“My aunt took her with her portable oxygen tank,” she said to the outlet. “Poll people were very kind. They met her out at her car.”

Phillips said her family is proud.

“To have someone literally need oxygen to breathe, pure tank of oxygen to breathe, put it in her car and ask to go on what may very well be the last week of her life,” she told NBC5, “that shows the dedication and priority that people need to look at.”

“Her priority through life was her family,” granddaughter Leslie Rene Moore said about the woman.

Other details about her death are not clear.

Election Day is Nov. 6, and polls are typically open starting from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., although some states have later opening times.

To find your nearest polling place, Democracy Works has come up with a website to help, and it can be accessed via GetToThePolls.com. Each state’s board of elections website also has information.