Nearly 2,500 mail-in ballots received by Harris County election officials were sent back as of Saturday because they failed to comply with the restrictive SB1, according to NPR. The law, which took effect after Dec. 2, 2021, requires that the ID Texans use for mail-in ballots matches the ID they registered to vote with. Voters have two options of identification they may be able to use: a “driver's license, election identification certificate, or personal identification card issued by the [Texas] Department of Public Safety license” or a partial social security number.” That limits acceptable forms of ID to just six options. And for many voters who may have registered decades ago, it can be difficult to remember which form of identification was first used. This has resulted in more than 30% of all mail-in ballots received in Harris County being returned to sender.
With early voting underway as of Monday and a primary set for March 1, officials are more than concerned turnout will change drastically as more and more ballots are likely sent back. “I am very concerned,” Harris County Elections Administrator Isabel Longoria told NPR. “Not just with the complexity of the process, but how that added complexity is going to increase the number of mail ballots that we have to reject.” Voting rights advocates are similarly worried about the law, which many say further disenfranchises marginalized voters on top of previous restrictive policies. Texas limits voting by mail to just a small subsection of voters, including those who are incarcerated, disabled, or over the age of 65. Though those ballots were flagged, there is still time for voters to remedy the issue and cast their ballots during this early voting period. The clock is ticking, however.
Yet another problem Texas voters face is even the ability to apply for and successfully receive mail-in ballots, especially when it comes to honoring stringent voter identification laws. Last month in Travis County alone, more than 300 applications for mail-in ballots were rejected based off the restrictions created by SB1. Speaking with Reuters, Travis County Clerk Dana DeBeauvoir flat-out said that “this is what voter suppression looks like.” In Harris County, more than 400 applications were rejected for the same reason. Voting accessibility has remained a major issue as well. No one but the person who is voting can fill out an application. Earlier this year, voting rights groups faced major issues in even obtaining the proper voter registration forms.
ACLU of Texas Policy and Advocacy Director Sarah Labowitz says the organization has spent “10 months testifying against exactly this.” Labowitz, who lives in Harris County, undertook volunteer deputy voter registrar training, which included receiving a packet of information with a guide and starter kit, along with completing a one-hour course. Labowitz was clear that the information she received, like the starter kit, may be the exception rather than the norm when it comes to training. What she saw within her training were the significant roadblocks Texas voters face when it comes to registering to vote and even casting mail-in ballots. She also noticed something hopeful hidden within the limited ways in which Texans can vote: Those who receive their driver’s licenses can register to vote at the same time, proving that “Texas has the infrastructure” to do better when it comes to voter registration.
Representation through redistricting has fared even worse in Texas, where multiple lawsuits are ongoing against the Republican-backed and governor-passed redistricting map. Due to a 2013 Supreme Court decision, states like Texas with histories of disenfranchisement no longer need federal preclearance when crafting redistricting maps. This has led to a marked reduction in Black and Hispanic-majority districts and boosted the number of districts in which Donald Trump would’ve won instead of Joe Biden during the 2020 election. The ACLU of Texas and other advocacy groups have partnered to create widespread polling place monitoring that includes a hotline voters and volunteers can call if they feel that they’ve been witness to voting rights violations. As Labowitz notes, the March 1 primary is “the warmup to the show in November and the warmup to 2024.” Now more than ever, it’s important to ensure that voting rights are bolstered in Texas and beyond. Call on lawmakers to confirm Biden’s Supreme Court nominee so that all may have their voices heard when they cast their ballots.