On Sept. 2, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sent Harris County officials a letter warning them against implementing a new voter registration program he deemed illegal.
Harris County Commissioners Court on Aug. 6 approved a pilot program to increase voter registration in the county. The program would use taxpayer funds to pay a third-party vendor to send voter registration forms to county residents, Community Impact previously reported.
Officials said commissioners voted to table the program in late August and confirmed there are no plans to move forward at this time.
The details
In the letter sent to Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo and county commissioners, Paxton said that the program to distribute voter registration forms to “unverified recipients” is illegal and can lead to ineligible people—such as felons and non-citizens—committing a felony if they attempt to register to vote.
Additionally, Paxton said Texas laws do not authorize counties to print and mail state voter registration forms, making the proposed program “fundamentally illegal.”
“It is unlawful and reckless for counties to use taxpayer dollars to indiscriminately send voter registration forms with no consideration of the recipients’ eligibility and without any statutory authority to do so,” Paxton said in a news release. “These counties’ attempts to do so after the Biden-Harris Administration has allowed millions of illegal aliens to enter the country are especially troubling.”
Taking a step back
In 2020, Paxton sued and won against Harris County over a similar proposal to send voter applications to every registered voter in the county, regardless of whether they had asked for an application by mail or not. In State v. Hollins, the court found Harris County exceeded its authority and sided with Paxton, deeming the proposal illegal.
In the letter sent to Hidalgo and county commissioners, Paxton cites State v. Hollins and reiterates the proposal to mass mail voter registration applications likely also exceeds the county’s authority.
“It is more important than ever that we maintain the integrity of our voter rolls and ensure only eligible voters decide our elections. Your proposal does the opposite by indiscriminately inviting county residents to register to vote regardless of their eligibility,” Paxton said in the news release. “I urge you to abandon this proposal. If you do not, I will see you in court.”
What else?
According to the Texas Secretary of State’s website, to be eligible to register to vote in Texas, a person must:
- Be 18 years or older
- Be a U.S. citizen
- Be a resident of the county where they submit an application to register
- Not be convicted of a felony
- Not declared by a court to be mentally incapacitated or partially mentally incapacitated without the right to vote
