Tag Archives: voter ID

More on the drivers license/birth certificate gender change ban

Posted on September 12, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This Houston Landing story from Friday covers the recent news about the very quiet policy changes regarding birth certificates and drivers licenses, and adds some extra information at the end. I’m going to focus on that part of it. The … Continue reading →

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DPS will no longer update gender on drivers licenses

Posted on August 22, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

What the hell? Transgender Texans will not be able to change the sex listed on their driver’s licenses, according to a policy change rolled out this week. Under the new policy, Texans will not be able to change the sex … Continue reading →

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Whiny loser election redo set for next May

Posted on May 30, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Pending appeal, of course. One of Harris County’s 2022 judicial races could be back on the ballot in May 2025 after a visiting judge from Bexar County ordered a redo earlier this month. Voters are set to go back to … Continue reading →

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We’re just not allowed to have close elections anymore

Posted on May 28, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

That’s my takeaway from this. A judge’s decision to order a new election in a close Harris County race from 2022 is putting election officials statewide on notice: Any type of error — large or small — has the potential … Continue reading →

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Judge throws out contested Pierce/Jones election

Posted on May 17, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I was at an event on Wednesday night so I didn’t see this until later in the evening. I didn’t have the best night’s sleep that night, I’ll tell you. A visiting judge from Bexar County on Wednesday ordered a … Continue reading →

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We have a final count of rejected mail ballots

Posted on April 7, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

About one in eight got canned. That’s a lot. The votes of more than 24,000 Texans who tried to cast ballots by mail were thrown out in the March primary — a dramatic increase in rejected ballots in the first … Continue reading →

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Still more on the mail ballot rejections

Posted on March 19, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

The Associated Press moves the ball forward now that the votes have been canvassed. Texas threw out mail votes at an abnormally high rate during the nation’s first primary of 2022, rejecting nearly 23,000 ballots outright under tougher voting rules … Continue reading →

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More data about mail ballot rejections

Posted on March 13, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Keep it coming. Thousands of Texans who attempted to vote by mail in the March primary were disenfranchised in the state’s first election conducted under a new Republican voting law. The state’s largest counties saw a significant spike in the … 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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On to the next mail ballot problem

Posted on February 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

A lot of the people who managed to fill out the mail ballot application form correctly have failed to fill in the newly-required voter ID information on the ballot and have to get that fixed or have their ballot tossed. … Continue reading →

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Lots of mail ballot applications are being rejected now

Posted on January 16, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This is a feature, not a bug. Hundreds of Texans seeking to vote by mail in the upcoming March primary elections are seeing their applications for ballots rejected by local election offices trying to comply with stricter voting rules enacted … Continue reading →

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Justice Department sues Texas over the voter suppression law

Posted on November 6, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Specifically, they are challenging a couple of specific provisions of the law. The U.S. Justice Department on Thursday sued Texas over its new voting law, expanding its effort to challenge Republican-backed measures passed in state legislatures. The lawsuit, brought by … Continue reading →

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The tab for voter ID

Posted on September 7, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Impressive. Texas remains responsible for nearly $6.8 million in legal fees and costs owed to the collection of parties who sued over its voter ID law. Though the state ultimately won the long-winding fight to keep the voter ID law … Continue reading →

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More on the post-quorum break fallout

Posted on June 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

This Trib story mostly centers on the perspective of the Black legislators during the SB7 fight, and it’s a good read for that, but I want to focus on this bit here: While the legislation in the Senate partly targeted … Continue reading →

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We have a poll that says people oppose more voting restrictions

Posted on March 20, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

A good sign, just remember our mantra about polls. As state Republicans push to restrict voting, a new poll shows a majority of Texans want more time to vote early and do not approve of threatening voters or those who … Continue reading →

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Republicans roll out their big voter suppression bill

Posted on March 17, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

They can’t do anything about blackouts or floods or COVID vaccinations, but they sure can do this. Joining a nationwide movement by Republicans to enact new restrictions on voting, Gov. Greg Abbott indicated Monday he will back legislation to outlaw … Continue reading →

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Who believes in the myth of voter fraud?

Posted on February 7, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Republicans do. Next question. A new University of Houston survey reveals the stark partisan divide among Texans on the issue of voter fraud in the November election. The survey found that 87 percent of Democrats believe there was no widespread … Continue reading →

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How Greg Abbott wants to restrict voting

Posted on February 6, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

More from that Trib story following the State of the State address. As part of his State of the State speech, Abbott designated five emergency items, or items that lawmakers can vote on within the first 60 days of session. … Continue reading →

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How bad will the attack on voting be this session?

Posted on January 14, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Hard to say, but there’s no reason to be particularly optimistic. As the country’s political polarization reaches a boiling point — illustrated vividly Wednesday by the violent takeover of the U.S. Capitol by supporters of the president who believed his … Continue reading →

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I remain pessimistic about the chances of good voting bills passing

Posted on November 28, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This Trib story suggests that with Republicans doing well in the high turnout 2020 election, and with the emergency measures that were implemented to expand voting access, the odds of getting a bill passed to make some forms of voting … Continue reading →

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A few thoughts about Election 2020 before Tuesday

Posted on November 2, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Just a brain dump, to get this all out there before we find out what happened. Let’s start with this: After the conclusion of three weeks of early voting, 9.7 million Texans have cast ballots, crushing previous early voting totals … Continue reading →

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Of course Republicans have benefited from voting by mail

Posted on November 1, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Obviously. And yes, even in recent elections. The coronavirus pandemic is expected to drive millions of Americans to vote by mail this year, a shift that data suggest is underway even in Texas, where only some voters are allowed to … Continue reading →

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Texas, the “We don’t want you to vote” state

Posted on October 19, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

And by “We” I mean “Republicans”. In five states controlled by Republican governors and legislatures, new policies allow all voters to use COVID-19 as an excuse to mail in their ballots. In Iowa, the Republican secretary of state sent absentee ballot applications for … Continue reading →

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How hard it is to vote is a policy choice

Posted on October 18, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Harris County tried to make it easier. The state GOP, various other Republican contingents, Greg Abbott, Ken Paxton, and others fought that choice every step of the way. Much of the Democrats’ dream of turning Texas blue is pinned on … Continue reading →

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County Clerk can send his vote by mail applications

Posted on September 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Good. A judge on Friday rejected Attorney General Ken Paxton’s request to halt Harris County’s plan to send mail ballot applications to all 2.4 million registered voters. State District Judge R.K. Sandill denied Paxton’s request for a temporary injunction, stating … Continue reading →

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State ordered to pay plaintiffs’ fees in voter ID case

Posted on June 3, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Pending appeal, of course. Texas ultimately won the long-winding fight to keep its voter ID law on the books, but a federal judge has ruled the state is on the hook for nearly $6.8 million in legal fees and costs. In a Wednesday … Continue reading →

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A note about voter ID and vote by mail

Posted on May 29, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

See if you can detect the same theme I’m detecting. From Houston Public Media: Rice University recently surveyed Harris County voters. And nearly 70 percent of respondents preferred voting by mail if that’s an option. “We found that a large … Continue reading →

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Dan Patrick gets all hysterical about voting by mail

Posted on May 24, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Poor Dan. You know how emotional he gets. Could someone get him a nice cup of chamomile tea, to help him calm down a bit? Thanks. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on Friday said that efforts to expand mail-in voting during … Continue reading →

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Federal court issues order to allow voting by mail

Posted on May 20, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go again. A federal judge opened a path for a massive expansion in absentee voting in Texas by ordering Tuesday that all state voters, regardless of age, qualify for mail-in ballots during the coronavirus pandemic. Days after a … Continue reading →

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Here’s the official order in the TDP vote by mail lawsuit

Posted on April 19, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Round One went to the plaintiffs. From there, who knows. A Texas state district judge on Friday issued an order allowing voters to use the coronavirus as a reason to vote by mail for as long as the pandemic lasts … Continue reading →

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Voting centers everywhere

Posted on September 15, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

In Dallas: Starting in November, problems like Mr. Voter’s, at least in Dallas County, will be a thing of the past. Tuesday afternoon, the Texas Secretary of State’s Office officially gave the county permission to participate in the countywide voting … Continue reading →

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No bail in

Posted on July 25, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

No surprise, I’m afraid. Texas won’t have to seek federal approval when state lawmakers draw new election maps in two years, a three-judge panel in San Antonio decided Wednesday. The judges, however, cautioned Texas that its next process will “undoubtedly” … Continue reading →

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A starter agenda for when we have a Democratic state government

Posted on June 16, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve been pondering the recent legislative session, which as we have discussed wasn’t great but also wasn’t nearly as bad as some other recent sessions have been. The qualification for all this is that the key defining factor for our … Continue reading →

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The Section 3 bail-in hearing

Posted on May 4, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

At long last, the final question to answer about Texas and the Voting Rights Act, namely has the state done enough bad stuff to be required to be put under preclearance again? Back in the federal courthouse where most of … Continue reading →

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