Tag Archives: voter registration

A brief word about voter registration in Houston

Posted on September 18, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

First, some important news: Houston residents have one month left to register to vote in November’s City Hall elections. Residents can visit various Harris County government offices, post offices, libraries or state agencies to fill out and submit a completed … Continue reading →

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UH-Hobby Center poll: Whitmire 34, Jackson Lee 32

Posted on July 26, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I have plenty to say about this. State Sen. John Whitmire and U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee would be neck-and-neck for first place if the Houston mayor’s race were held today, but Whitmire would sprint ahead in a potential runoff, … Continue reading →

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Farewell, ERIC

Posted on July 22, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Into the unknown… The Texas secretary of state submitted its exit notice Thursday to a national coalition that is one of the best tools to combat voter fraud, according to a copy of the letter obtained by Votebeat. The withdrawal from the … Continue reading →

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What might come after ERIC

Posted on June 15, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

An interesting report from TPM. The Alan Vera Memorial Act both forces the state to leave ERIC, and also to find a replacement vendor — one that can do what ERIC does with a start-up cost of $100,000 or less, … Continue reading →

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A tale of two elections bills

Posted on May 28, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The good news. Texas lawmakers have voted to reverse an expensive state law requiring election officials to replace all their current vote-counting equipment with technology that doesn’t exist. An unprecedented mandate the Legislature passed in 2021, without fully realizing its … Continue reading →

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There’s nothing like ERIC

Posted on April 2, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Be careful what you seek to destroy, Republicans. 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 … Continue reading →

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Founder of that voter roll maintenance program that election denialists hate has stepped down

Posted on March 15, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I’m sure this will calm everyone down and restore the faith everyone once had in this program. Right? David Becker, an election law advocate who helped create the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), is vacating his position on its board … Continue reading →

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The latest obsession of election denialist crackpots

Posted on March 14, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

You may want to sit down before you read this. 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 … Continue reading →

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A very early thought about turnout in the 2023 Houston election

Posted on February 7, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Before I begin, please note that all of this involves a lot of back-of-the-envelope math and more than a few assumptions made along the way. The number of registered voters in Harris County, and thus in Houston, will certainly change … Continue reading →

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It always comes down to fluoride

Posted on November 7, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I swear, it’s at the root of most election conspiracy fantasies. Laura Pressley and three other people huddled inside a Fredericksburg courtroom Monday, bowing their heads, closing their eyes, holding hands, and beginning to pray in hushed voices. “In Jesus’ … Continue reading →

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Final November 2022 EV totals: Catching up

Posted on November 6, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

First, some slightly outdated numbers from the Chron. Fewer Harris County voters cast ballots during this year’s early voting period than in the 2020 and 2018 elections, according to unofficial voter counts released after polls closed on Friday night. From … Continue reading →

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November 2022 Day Ten EV totals: Two to go

Posted on November 4, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This is the data from Wednesday. It came in a little later than usual. Since yesterday was the vote-till-10PM day, I thought I’d provide this update now, and will give the final EV totals on Sunday. Final EV totals from … Continue reading →

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November 2022 Day Nine EV Totals: Still lagging

Posted on November 2, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Nine days down, three to go: Final EV totals from 2018 are here and from 2014 are here. The Day Nine totals for 2022 are here. Year Mail Early Total =============================== 2014 60,400 191,432 251,832 2018 80,279 557,264 637,543 2022 … Continue reading →

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November 2022 Day Seven EV totals: On to Week 2

Posted on October 31, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Fresh from Sunday night: Final EV totals from 2018 are here and from 2014 are here. The Day Seven totals for 2022 are here. Year Mail Early Total =============================== 2014 57,546 137,137 194,683 2018 77,347 429,009 506,356 2022 44,163 354,100 … Continue reading →

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How long has it been since the Fifth Circuit upheld a voter suppression law?

Posted on October 29, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

However long it’s been, they’re back at it. A federal appeals court on Wednesday revived a 2021 Texas law that set new residency requirements for voter registration, including one that civil rights groups alleged essentially blocked college students from signing … Continue reading →

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November 2022 Day Five EV totals: A closer look at mail ballots

Posted on October 29, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

The numbers are what they are. Nearly half as many people have so far voted by mail in Harris County as in 2018 during the same period, state data show. About 31,000 voters submitted mail-in ballots by the end of … Continue reading →

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We hit a new peak in voter registrations

Posted on October 27, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

It’s good to see, whatever it “means”. Texas now has almost 17.7 million voters — 1.9 million more than four years ago, when Gov. Greg Abbott won re-election. New voter registration totals from the Texas Division of Elections show the … Continue reading →

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November 2022 Day Three EV totals: A lot like Day Two

Posted on October 27, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Sorry, the days are long and my mind is full and I don’t have anything interesting to say. I will at some point. For now, this is what we get. Final EV totals from 2018 are here and from 2014 … Continue reading →

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November 2022 Day Two EV totals: Just the facts

Posted on October 26, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I’m just going to get into it, I don’t have anything to add to the numbers. Final EV totals from 2018 are here and from 2014 are here. The Day Two totals for 2022 are here. Year Mail Early Total … Continue reading →

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November 2022 Day One EV totals: The in person experience

Posted on October 25, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s your Chron story about Day One of early voting. More than 60,000 registered voters Harris County decided Monday they couldn’t wait any longer to cast a ballot for their choices in the 2022 midterm election. Monday was the first … Continue reading →

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I think you know the root cause of the problem, John

Posted on October 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I was fascinated by this Texas Monthly feature on Secretary of State John Scott, who is being pushed to reckon with the insane and dangerous levels of election denial and anti-democratic activism. I’m pretty sure he gets it, he just … Continue reading →

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At least one local voter purge effort has been thwarted

Posted on October 4, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

For now, at least. Like flies to garbage, though, you know they’ll be back for more. The Harris County Elections Administrator’s Office received a flood of affidavits this summer challenging the eligibility of thousands of registered voters throughout the county, … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit does its thing with appeal of voter purge case

Posted on October 2, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Get out the rubber stamp. A federal appeals court has ruled that Texas does not need to release details about a list of 11,737 registered voters whom the state has identified as potential noncitizens. The U.S. Court of Appeals for … Continue reading →

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Voter registration update

Posted on September 25, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

However you look at it, we have a lot of registered voters now. With three weeks before the Oct. 11 deadline for the November elections, nearly 80% of the state’s voting age population is registered to vote, putting the number … Continue reading →

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Let’s not go overboard about these voter registration numbers

Posted on September 12, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Sure it’s nice to see, but a little perspective is in order. In Texas, it’s not just women who are fired up about access to abortion and registering to vote in large numbers following this summer’s historic Supreme Court decision … Continue reading →

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State ordered to turn over voter purge data

Posted on August 5, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Very good. A federal judge ruled this week that the state is violating U.S. law by refusing to release its list of more than 11,000 registered voters that it identified as potential noncitizens, and ordered the release of the data … Continue reading →

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Law against some new voter registration restrictions is struck down

Posted on August 4, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Good, though one must always remember the threat of the Fifth Circuit. A federal judge on Tuesday night blocked a Texas law passed in 2021 that put new restrictions on people trying to register to vote in the state. The … Continue reading →

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A Skeet Jones update

Posted on July 25, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

NBC News does us the favor of an update on Skeet Jones, the (allegedly) cattle-rustlin’ County Judge of Loving County. On a December day in 2021, Loving County Judge Skeet Jones, 71, climbed atop an oilfield tank surrounded by wide-open … Continue reading →

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The continued Republican threat to voting

Posted on July 5, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

They cannot be satisfied. Not satisfied with the new voting restrictions put in place less than a year ago, the Texas Republican Party is plowing ahead with yet new measures that would reduce the number of early voting days and … Continue reading →

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Have van, will travel to register voters

Posted on March 8, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Nice. Tayhlor Coleman keeps a framed Texas voter roll from 1867 in the van she calls home to remind her why she chose to live there in the first place. Names from her family tree appear here and there throughout … Continue reading →

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Yes, most people will generally support the idea of decent election reforms

Posted on February 12, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

But that doesn’t mean they’ll vote for politicians who support them, and that right there makes all the difference. From the UH Hobby School, here’s part four of their January 2022 public opinion fest, which began with their election poll. … Continue reading →

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Voting Rights Groups Sue Texas for Failure to Disclose Records Related to Voter Purges

Posted on February 3, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: The Campaign Legal Center (CLC), the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Texas, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and DĒMOS filed a lawsuit asking the U.S. … Continue reading →

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The story of the paper shortage and the voter registration forms, in two tweets

Posted on January 26, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

One: . New: League of Women Voters of Texas has sent a letter to the Texas SOS threatening to sue the state unless they are provided with more copies of new voter registration forms. They say SOS is in violation … Continue reading →

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Sure, let’s blame the supply chain for voter registration problems

Posted on January 19, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I have a simple solution for this, if anyone wants to hear it. The Texas Secretary of State’s office is having more trouble than usual getting enough voter registration cards to groups who help Texans register to vote. Sam Taylor, … Continue reading →

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