Texas

Texas law abolishing Harris County elections office goes into effect | Jen Rice/Houston Chronicle

Harris County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth and Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector Ann Harris Bennett have assumed responsibility for running elections and voter registration following the implementation of a new Texas state law that abolished the elections administrator's office in Harris County. Senate Bill 1750, which applies only to Harris County, eliminates the appointed elections administrator role and reverts the duties for overseeing elections to the county clerk and voter registration to the tax assessor-collector. A separate law, Senate Bill 1933, allows the state to remove elected officials if a "recurring pattern of problems" is not addressed. Critics argue that these changes are politically motivated and may hinder voter access. Read Article

Texas: Harris County Commissioners Court to hold public discussion on elections office transition ahead of November | Jen Rice/Houston Chronicle

Harris County Commissioners Court is preparing for a public discussion about a significant reorganization of elections administration duties ahead of the November election. The reorganization follows the implementation of a new state law that abolishes the Elections Administrator's office and transfers the responsibility of running elections and voter registration to the Harris County Clerk and Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector. Commissioners Court is also expected to vote on the distribution of elections office staff positions, with 131 positions going to the county clerk's office and 39 positions to the tax assessor-collector's office. This transition has been criticized for its lack of transparency, and it comes after a series of challenges and changes in election leadership within Harris County. Read Article

Texas officials can’t toss mail ballots over ID mistakes, federal judge rules | Cayla Harris/San Antonio Express-News

A federal judge has ruled that a provision of Texas Senate Bill 1, which rejected nearly 40,000 absentee ballot submissions due to errors like mismatched numbers, violates the Civil Rights Act. The court found that these errors are not material in determining whether voters are qualified under Texas law to vote by mail. The decision is seen as a win for Texas voters, especially those who rely on mail-in ballots due to disabilities or age, and is aimed at ensuring that eligible voters' ballots are not rejected based on minor errors or omissions. This ruling follows concerns about the impact of the law, especially on minority voters, who were 50% more likely to have their mail ballots rejected, according to a study. Read Article

Texas Supreme Court denies Harris County request to run November election and delay state law | Jen Rice/Houston Chronicle

The Texas Supreme Court has denied Harris County's request for an emergency order that would have allowed the Harris County Elections Administrator's Office to oversee the upcoming November election. This decision clears the way for Senate Bill 1750, a new state law abolishing the office, to go into effect on September 1. The county had sought an emergency order to delay the law's implementation while the state's appeal was pending. The Supreme Court's decision means that Harris County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth and the Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector Ann Harris Bennett will be responsible for overseeing the election, which is now just weeks away. Read Article

Texas judge blocks state-mandated changes to Harris County elections | Natalia Contreras/The Texas Tribune

The Texas attorney general’s office has appealed a judge's decision to temporarily block a new law passed by Republicans that aimed to abolish the elections chief position in Harris County, Texas. A Travis County district judge ruled that the law is unconstitutional and would disrupt the fall's elections. The law would have required the county to eliminate the elections administrator position and transfer election duties to the county clerk and the tax assessor-collector. The appeal was filed in the Texas Supreme Court, keeping the judge's order from taking effect. The decision is part of a larger debate about state authority over elections in Texas. Read Article

Texas judge says no quick ruling expected over GOP efforts to toss 2022 election losses near Houston | Associated Press

A Texas judge overseeing Republicans' challenges to losses in the 2022 elections in Houston has indicated that a quick ruling shouldn't be expected after a trial where no GOP voters testified that they were unable to vote due to ballot shortages or delayed poll openings. The disputed races are all in Harris County, controlled by Democrats, and the trial was marked by a lack of testimonies from voters, with Republican lawyers relying on party-generated theories. The judge expects to issue a ruling in the coming weeks. Harris County's elections have been under scrutiny due to various issues in recent elections, and similar court challenges have emerged around the country following baseless conspiracy theories about the 2020 presidential election. Read Article

Texas to Leave ERIC, a Voting Integrity Group Targeted by Right-Wing Attacks | Neil Vigdor/The New York Times

Texas has decided to withdraw from the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), a bipartisan voter integrity group that maintains accurate voter rolls. The state cited rising membership costs due to declining enrollment and a new state law requiring alternatives for crosschecking voter lists as reasons for the decision. ERIC, which helps prevent duplicate voter registrations and ensures voting accuracy, has faced attacks and defections from other Republican-led states after false claims that it is a voter registration tool for Democrats and has ties to liberal donors. Texas is the largest member of the coalition, which has lost several other states since last year, and its departure further destabilizes the organization. Read Article

Texas fixes some obstacles to mail voting that dogged voters | Natalia Contreras/The Texas Tribune

Texas lawmakers have made changes to voting by mail in an effort to lower rejection rates of applications and ballots. The revisions come after thousands of applications were rejected due to stricter identification requirements implemented in 2021. The new changes aim to provide voters with more opportunities and time to correct errors, as well as easier access to the state's online tracking tool. However, some voters are skeptical about the necessity of the previous restrictive rules and whether the current fixes are sufficient. The changes include notifying voters of errors in their mail-in applications or ballots and allowing earlier review of mail-in ballots by election workers. Read Article

Texas Governor vetoes bill to give people with disabilities new mail voting option | Natalia Contreras/The Texas Tribune

Texas Governor Greg Abbott vetoed a bipartisan bill, House Bill 3159, that aimed to expand vote-by-mail access for people with disabilities, particularly those who are blind or paralyzed and require assistance marking their ballot. The bill, co-authored by state representatives Jeff Leach and John H. Bucy III, would have allowed voters with disabilities to request an electronic ballot and use a computer to mark their choices, ensuring private and secure voting. However, Abbott argued that the bill did not limit the use of electronic and accessible ballots exclusively to voters with disabilities, stating it would apply to any voter eligible for mail-in voting. Advocates, policy experts, and voting rights advocates disputed Abbott's interpretation, pointing out that the bill specifically required voters to affirm a sickness or physical condition that prevents them from appearing at the polling place without assistance or injuring their health. The veto was seen as a setback for voters with disabilities who had long sought an independent way to mark their mail-in ballots. Read Article

Texas is finally making voting easier for people with disabilities, including a new option to vote by mail | Natalia Contreras/Votebeat Texas

Texas lawmakers have passed a set of voting laws with bipartisan support aimed at improving ballot access for individuals with disabilities. The legislation includes measures to allow voters who need assistance to cast their mail-in ballots privately and securely using an electronic system, as well as providing in-person voting accommodations such as skipping lines and designating curbside parking spaces for disabled voters. The bills, now awaiting Governor Greg Abbott's decision, represent a significant victory for disability rights advocates who have long called for voting access improvements. The success of these bills stands in contrast to other restrictive voting laws pushed by Republican lawmakers in the state. Read Article

Texas: Harris County elections face state intervention under new laws | Natalia Contreras/The Texas Tribune

Texas Republicans have passed legislation that grants unprecedented state interventions into elections in Harris County, potentially overhauling the Democratic stronghold. The bills allow for the removal of the county's chief elections official and state supervision in response to administrative complaints. Experts warn that this sets a concerning precedent, resembling tactics used in Florida and Georgia, and could indicate an intention to control elections beyond Harris County. These changes contribute to the ongoing partisan battle over election administration in Texas. Read Article

Texas Legislature averts $100 million consequences of law requiring nonexistent election technology | Natalia Contreras/Votebeat Texas

Texas lawmakers have passed a bill reversing a costly state law that required election officials to replace their existing vote-counting equipment with non-existent technology. The 2021 mandate, initially aimed at preventing vote data tampering, would have forced counties to purchase new equipment worth over $100 million. The newly approved bill allows counties to continue using their current equipment, addressing concerns raised by election officials and experts. The legislative session presented the best opportunity to amend the law before it took effect for the 2026 elections. The corrective legislation, sponsored by State Sen. Bryan Hughes, received unanimous approval from both chambers and will go into effect on September 1, relieving election administrators who had raised the alarm about the costly requirement. The law, based on a misunderstanding of its scope, would have necessitated the replacement of equipment each election at a significant expense. Read Article

Texas: Harris County to sue over GOP-backed bills targeting local elections | Jen Rice/Houston Chronicle

Harris County, Texas plans to file a lawsuit challenging two election bills, both of which are targeted specifically at the county. One bill eliminates the elections administrator office, while the other increases state oversight and grants the Secretary of State the authority to observe activities in the county's election office. County Attorney Christian Menefee argues that the bills violate the Texas Constitution, which prohibits legislation targeting specific cities or counties. The bills were initially written to apply more broadly but were later narrowed to only affect Harris County. Menefee intends to file the lawsuit after the bills are signed into law by the governor. Read Article

Texas Legislature could take rare step to eliminate Harris County’s elections administrator position | Jen Rice/Houston Chronicle

The Texas Legislature is considering a bill that could eliminate the position of Harris County elections administrator, which would be an unprecedented move to remove a local official without the county's consent. The bill, authored by state Senator Paul Bettencourt, has already passed the Senate and a House committee. If signed into law, the responsibilities of overseeing elections in Harris County would revert back to the county clerk and tax assessor-collector, who previously handled the task. While the bill is specific to Harris County, its passage could set a precedent for similar actions targeting officials in other counties. The move has raised concerns about the state's interference in local government and the potential erosion of voter accountability. The bill is part of a broader effort by the Texas Legislature to restrict the powers of local governments, including measures that limit the ability to pass local ordinances. Read Article

Texas: Eliminating countywide voting would make the process harder on voters, cost more money, election leaders say | Pooja Salhotra/The Texas Tribune

Texas lawmakers are considering a bill that would eliminate vote centers, which allow any registered voter to vote at any polling location in the county on Election Day, and instead require residents to vote at an assigned precinct in their neighborhood. The bill, SB 990, has passed the state Senate and is now being reviewed by the House Elections Committee. Supporters of the bill argue that it would ensure accurate vote counts and prevent multiple voting, although no evidence has been provided to support these claims. Critics, including voting rights advocates and local government officials, argue that vote centers are popular and that eliminating them would create logistical and financial burdens for election offices. Read Article

Texas Republicans Push New Voting Restrictions Aimed at Houston | J. David Goodman/The New York Times

The Republican-dominated Texas Legislature is targeting Harris County, an emerging Democratic stronghold, with a series of election bills aimed at exerting more control over voting in the county. The 2022 races for local judges and county leaders were fiercely contested, as Republicans sought to capitalize on crime concerns and make inroads in the state's largest urban area. However, they were unsuccessful, leading to efforts by Republicans to pass new election laws that include limits on polling places, felony penalties for illegal voting, and a mechanism for ordering new elections in certain circumstances. Republicans view Harris County as a crucial battleground and are determined to prevent it from becoming another heavily Democratic urban center. Read Article

Texas Republicans want power to overturn Harris County elections over mishaps at the polls | Jeremy Wallace/Houston Chronicle

The Texas Senate on Tuesday passed legislation to allow Gov. Greg Abbott precedent-setting power to overturn elections in Harris County, in order to punish local officials for running out of ballot paper at some polling sites last year. The legislation, which passed the Senate 19-12, would give Abbott’s appointed secretary of state the authority to order an entirely new election in Harris County if the county ever again runs out of paper at 2 percent or more of its polling sites for over an hour. “There is no reason, there is no excuse why we can’t competently run our elections and have adequate ballot paper,” said state Sen. Mayes Middleton, R-Galveston, a co-author of the bill whose district includes part of southeast Harris County.  The measure provoked outrage from outnumbered Democrats in the Texas Senate who blasted Middleton for trying to give the governor new authority to toss election results as President Donald Trump sought to do after he lost in 2020. Full Article: Texas Republicans seek to overturn Houston elections over poll mishaps

Texas: Software company withdrew lawsuit against Houston-based True the Vote | Jonathan Limehouse/Houston Chronicle

An election management software company withdrew a lawsuit last week that accused a Houston-based conservative nonprofit of making slanderous statements about the software company's work during the 2020 election. The company reserved the right to refile the federal case at a later date. The suit had a brief and tumultuous history on the Houston docket. In late October, True the Vote leaders testified that they had learned concerning information about the software company from FBI agents. The federal judge pressed the conservative leaders to disclose more of the details of their accusations. He then held the founder and a contractor for the conservative group in contempt and ordered them to serve time in jail. Then in February, the federal judge recused himself. On April 19, Konnech Inc., a Michigan-based company specializing in election logistic software, asked the newly assigned judge to dismiss the case "without prejudice" against True the Vote. The company is also withdrawing its case against Catherine Engelbrecht, the organization's founder, and contractor Gregg Phillips, according to court documents. The Sept. 12 suit came in response to Engelbrecht's and Phillips' accusation that Konnech had allowed the Chinese government to access a server in China that held the personal information —  including Social Security numbers, phone numbers, bank account numbers and addresses — of nearly 2 million U.S. election workers. True the Vote’s “unique brand of racism and xenophobia” had defamed Konnech and its founder, Eugene Yu, the lawsuit said. Full Article: Software company withdrew lawsuit against Houston-based True the Vote

Texas Senate OKs end to countywide voting on Election Day | Pooja Salhotra and James Barragan/The Texas Tribune

Countywide polling locations on Election Day would be banned in Texas under a bill approved by the Texas Senate on Thursday. Senate Bill 990, authored by Republican Sen. Bob Hall of Edgewood, passed 17-12 along party lines. The bill — if approved by the state House — would eliminate countywide voting centers on Election Day and require residents to vote at an assigned precinct, typically in their neighborhood. Larger voting centers would be permitted through early voting. Currently, 90 counties — including large metro counties like Harris and Dallas as well as rural ones — are approved by the secretary of state’s office to use countywide voting centers on Election Day. Hall has framed the bill as necessary to address potential issues with vote counts, but Democrats who opposed the bill pressed him for any evidence that countywide polling had led to people voting at more than one location. Hall said on Thursday that spreading voting locations across a precinct makes it “impossible” to ensure an accurate count and that limiting voters to a central polling location would simplify the tally. There has been no evidence of systematic voter fraud in Texas. And each county that has been approved to use countywide voting policies must pass audits by the secretary of state’s office during two election cycles to keep the practice in place. Officials with the secretary of state’s election division have said the program — which began in rural counties — is popular among voters because it allows them to vote anywhere in the county. That is especially helpful in some of the state’s largest and most sprawling counties like Harris and Bexar, where Texans have long commutes from work to home and could possibly miss their window to vote if they don’t make it to their neighborhood precinct on time after work. Election officials also like the convenience the program provides to voters because they don’t have to scramble to figure out where to vote on Election Day. Full Article: Texas Senate OKs end to countywide voting on Election Day | The Texas Tribune

Another Texas Election Official Quits After Threats From Trump Supporters | Neil Vigdor/The New York Times

Heider Garcia, the head of elections in Tarrant County, Texas, announced this week that he would resign after facing death threats, joining other beleaguered election officials across the nation who have quit under similar circumstances. Mr. Garcia oversees elections in a county where, in 2020, Donald J. Trump became only the second Republican presidential candidate to lose in more than 50 years. Right-wing skepticism of the election results fueled threats against him, even though the county received acclaim from state auditors for its handling of the 2020 voting. With Mr. Trump persistently repeating the lie that he won the 2020 election, many of his supporters and those in right-wing media have latched on to conspiracy theories and joined him in spreading disinformation about election security. Those tasked with running elections, even in deeply Republican areas that did vote for Mr. Trump in 2020, have borne the brunt of vitriol and threats from people persuaded by baseless claims of fraud. Full Article: Another Texas Election Official Quits After Threats From Trump Supporters - The New York Times

Texas lawmakers take first steps to reverse course on costly requirement for election technology that doesn’t exist | Natalia Contreras/The Texas Tribune

Texas lawmakers are trying to undo an expensive election problem they didn’t realize they had created in the first place. In 2021, they passed a law that is set to require counties to purchase vote-counting equipment that does not yet exist and that would cost taxpayers more than $100 million. The measure, when it was proposed, went unnoticed and passed on a voice vote without debate. After Votebeat reported in February on the unprecedented problem with the law and election officials’ deep concerns, state Sen. Bryan Hughes, a Republican, and other lawmakers filed legislation to ease the conundrum the measure had forced on Texas counties, which would be prohibited from using their current vote-counting equipment and required to purchase new equipment each election. Hughes said during a committee hearing last month that there had been a “misunderstanding on the scope” of the provision. Hughes’ new proposal, Senate Bill 1661, would amend the language of that law to allow counties to continue to use the voting equipment they have without any additional costs to counties or taxpayers. “When this became law, the hope was that it would get fixed this session, and we’re glad to see it’s getting addressed,” said Chris Davis, the Williamson County elections administrator. “We’re glad [lawmakers] recognize their mistake.”

Full Article: Texas lawmakers walk back election voting equipment requirement | The Texas Tribune

Texas GOP wants out of national program that targets voter fraud | Cayla Harris/San Antonio Express-News

State lawmakers are taking steps to pull Texas out of a multistate partnership that helps prevent voter fraud and encourages unregistered citizens to sign up to vote. Officials have hinted at the state’s impending exit from the Electronic Registration Information Center for months, and senators heard testimony on a bill last week that would clear the way for Texas to leave the program. The initiative launched in 2012 and had more than 30 member states at its peak, helping local governments identify voters who moved, died or had duplicate registrations. Texas Republicans say they want to replace ERIC with their own program, but it’s unclear how long it would take to develop and how many states would join. “Many Texans and folks across the country — but in particular, Texans — are concerned about the security of voter information flowing to this national organization, also about the high cost associated with it,” said state Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, as he introduced Senate Bill 1070 last week. Full Article: Texas GOP wants out of national program that targets voter fraud

Texas may be about to scrap a voting security system it can’t replace | Natalia Contreras/The Texas Tribune

With some Texas Republicans pushing the state to abandon one its best tools for preventing voter fraud — a coalition of states that share voting roll data to weed out duplicate and suspicious registrations — the secretary of state’s office is trying to discern if it can build a replacement. But the effort could easily stall or take years, experts say. Similar efforts in other states over the past two decades have not worked, or have been shut down, because they lacked bipartisan support from multiple states and access to the kind of national data that produces accurate cross-state voter list matching — all of which the Electronic Information Registration Center, or ERIC,spent years developing. The push to have Texas become the latest state to withdraw from ERIC, a long-standing effort by nearly 30 states, is rooted in a yearlong misinformation campaign that spread through right-wing media platforms and advocacy groups. Full Article: Texas may be about to scrap a voting security system it can’t replace | The Texas Tribune

Texas Senate passes bill to make illegal voting a felony again | Pooja Salhotra/The Texas Tribune

The Texas Senate on Tuesday gave final approval, on a 19–12 vote, to legislation that would raise the penalty for voting illegally from a misdemeanor to a felony, a priority for Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and other conservative lawmakers who have worked to remake the state’s voting laws since the 2020 election, despite the lack of evidence of widespread voter fraud in Texas. Senate Bill 2 heads next to the lower chamber for consideration. If the bill becomes law, a person found guilty of the crime could face up to 20 years in prison and more than $10,000 in fines. The initial debate on the floor Monday between Democratic lawmakers and Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, the bill’s author, focused heavily on what constitutes illegal voting. Lawmakers disagreed over whether, under the bill, a person who mistakenly votes illegally could be prosecuted. Democrats pointed to examples such as a person who knows they have been convicted of a felony but doesn’t realize that makes them ineligible to vote or a person who knows they are not a U.S. citizen but does not know that makes them ineligible. Full Article: Texas Senate gives OK to make illegal voting a felony | The Texas Tribune

Texas Lawmakers Seek to Replace ‘Elections Administrators’ with Elected Officials in Large Counties | Holly Hansen/The Texan

In the past few years, election missteps in Harris County have repeatedly drawn national media attention, lawsuits, election contests, and a criminal investigation. This year, state lawmakers are considering a slew of legislative fixes to improve large county management of elections. In the latest proposal, Texas Sen. Paul Bettencourt (R-Houston) and Rep. Briscoe Cain (R-Deer Park) are demanding that counties with a population of more than one million return elections management to elected officials they say will be more accountable to the public. “Voters should have confidence in their elections, and when they see Harris County Elections Administrators botch election after election in 2022 that confidence is shaken,” said Bettencourt, who previously served as the Harris County tax assessor-collector & voter registrar. Among large Texas counties, Harris, Dallas, Tarrant, Bexar, and Collin have appointed election administrators to manage elections. About half Texas’ 254 counties employ elections administrators, while the others give responsibility to elected officials such as the county clerk. Full Article: Texas Lawmakers Seek to Replace 'Elections Administrators' with Elected Officials in Large Counties | The Texan

Texas: Conspiracy theory whirlwind threatens to blow state out of national program that keeps voter rolls updated | Natalia Contreras/The Texas Tribune

In virtual meetings taking place over a year, right-wing activists and Republican legislators have stoked concern over a multistate coalition that Texas and more than 30 other states use to help clean voter rolls. The majority of their grievances — that it is run by left-wing voter registration activists and funded by billionaire George Soros, among other things — were pulled straight from a far-right conspiracy website and are baseless. Now, lawmakers who regularly attend those meetings have introduced legislation written by the group that would end Texas’s participation in the coalition: the Electronic Registration Information Center, also known as ERIC. The bills were introduced despite the efforts of Texas’ elections director, who attended a meeting and offered factual information related to their concerns last April, apparently without success. Keith Ingram, the elections director for the secretary of state’s office, told the group that the program was the only option available to ensure voters aren’t registered or voting in more than one state at the same time. Nonetheless, the activists moved forward with an effort that experts say is set to undermine one of the best election integrity tools available to Texas and other states to prevent election fraud. Full Article: Right-wing activists want Texas to quit ERIC, a program that updates voter rolls | The Texas Tribune

Texas bill would allow the state to replace local elections administrators | Natalia Contreras/The Texas Tribune

House and Senate bills filed by Republican lawmakers in response to Harris County’s mismanagement of its recent elections could give the Texas secretary of state the authority to step in, suspend county election administrators when a complaint is filed and appoint a replacement administrator. Election administration experts told Votebeat the legislation was an overreaction to the desire to hold Harris County accountable for years of election mismanagement, and would disrupt the state’s ability to help county election offices improve and address systemic problems. If passed, the secretary of state’s office would change from being a guide and resource for election workers to being an auditor that can investigate and fire them. Some election officials are concerned this change could prevent local election workers from asking questions or seeking help from the office for fear of being reprimanded. “Currently we work hand-in-hand. [The secretary of state’s staff] are our No. 1 resource, and that benefits all voters,” said Jennifer Doinoff, Hays County elections administrator. “Putting them in the position of oversight would definitely change the dynamic.” Full Article: Texas bill would allow the state to replace local elections administrators | The Texas Tribune

Texas bill would make illegal voting a felony again, even if someone doesn’t know they’re ineligible to vote | Natalia Contreras/The Texas Tribune

Republican leaders in the Texas Senate are intent on raising the penalty for voting illegally from a misdemeanor to a second-degree felony, despite the lack of evidence of widespread voter fraud in Texas. The effort comes nearly two years after the Legislature passed a sweeping voting bill, Senate Bill 1, that lowered the penalties for such crimes to a misdemeanor — and then almost immediately began discussing raising them back. Senate Bill 2, filed Tuesday by state Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, would also change the standard for determining someone’s intent for illegal voting, according to policy experts. The law as enacted under SB 1 says a person commits a crime if they “knowingly or intentionally” vote or attempt to vote in an election in which the person “knows they’re not eligible” to vote. Hughes’ new bill changes that language so that anyone who votes or attempts to vote in an election in which “the person knows of a particular circumstance that makes the person not eligible to vote” could face charges. That means that rather than having to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the voter knew they were casting their ballot unlawfully, prosecutors would only need to show beyond a reasonable doubt that the voter knew of the circumstance that made them ineligible to vote, said James Slattery, senior supervising legislative attorney with the Texas Civil Rights Project. Full Article: Texas Senate revives effort to make illegal voting a felony | The Texas Tribune

Texas: Unrecoverable Election Screwup in Williamson County | Andrew Appel/Freedom to Tinker

In the November 2020 election in Williamson County, Texas, flawed e-pollbook software resulted in voters inadvertently voting for candidates and questions not from their own districts but from others in the same county.  These voters were deprived of the opportunity to vote for candidates they were entitled to vote for—and their votes were wrongly counted in elections that they shouldn’t have voted in.  This wasn’t the voters’ fault, but it does mean that the results in elections for local offices were affected by this screwup by Tenex Software Solutions.  Tenex’s e-pollbook malfunctions call into question the results of the 2020 school district races, municipal elections, potentially a county commissioners race, and state legislative races in Williamson County. As more and more states use e-pollbooks in vote centers, election administrators should understand this failure, because it could potentially affect any kind of e-pollbook that prints ballots on demand. I’ve written about other screwups caused by election software or hardware—in Antrim County MI, in Windham NH, in Mercer County NJ—but in all those cases, voters marked the paper ballots they were entitled to vote on, and election officials can and did recount those ballots to report accurate election results.  That is, all those screwups were recoverable, and election officials took immediate action to recount and recover—to get an accurate result. Full Article: Unrecoverable Election Screwup in Williamson County TX - Freedom to Tinker

Texas: Overlooked provision of SB 1 requires election equipment that doesn’t exist, at a cost of $116 million | Natalia Contreras/Votebeat Texas

When state lawmakers passed a sweeping and controversial new election law in 2021, they quietly included a provision that drew little notice or debate. But election administration experts say the measure is unprecedented, it mandates the purchase of voting technology that doesn’t currently exist — and it’s on the verge of costing taxpayers more than $100 million. Sponsors of the provision said they aimed to prevent cheating in elections by prohibiting the use of modern technology to count votes and store cast ballot data. It passed without debate on a voice vote, and goes into effect just before the November 2026 general election. ... Here’s how it works now: With permission from the Texas secretary of state, election officials use media storage devices such as USB flash drives — provided by state-certified voting machine vendors — to collect data from ballot scanners used at precincts and voting centers on Election Day. Those drives are how officials easily and safely take that data on cast ballots to a central counting station, where they’re inserted into a tabulating computer to quickly gather results. The equipment involved is expensive, and elections officials reuse it each time an election is held, writing over the previous data with the new election data. But the provision — proposed by Sen. Bob Hall (R-Edgewood) and supported by the then-bill’s primary author, Sen. Bryan Hughes (R-Mineola) — prohibits the use of this exact kind of data storage device that can be reused, including the ballot scanners and the tabulating machines. Experts say that, in order to fully comply with the new law, counties would have to buy entirely new voting systems each election cycle. Full Article: SB 1 provision requires the use of voting equipment that doesn’t exist - Votebeat Texas - Nonpartisan local reporting on elections and voting