Flaws in Texas Voter Registration System Leave Voters Out of the Rolls Ahead of Election Day

A recent investigation found that dozens of Texas voters have not been registered into the state's election rolls despite of them following the required steps.

Texas is one of eight states nationwide that does not provide an online voter registration option. Every registration has to be entered into county election systems by hand, making the fate of millions of voter applications susceptible to human error — both by the applicants and county registration workers — the investigation found.

In Texas, people fill out paper voter applications that are then sent to local election offices by voters themselves or volunteer deputies. Texans can also register to vote via the Department of Public Safety (DPS) when obtaining or updating a driver's license.

Votebeat journalists reached out to election officials, volunteer deputies, and voters who shared examples of voter applications gone wrong due to flaws in the system. The investigation used Nueces County resident Hannah Murry's case as an example.

Murry registered to vote in a registration drive at her university. One year later, when she was about to cast her ballot, she discovered she couldn't vote, and that it was too late to fix the problem.

Like Murray, thousands of hundreds of voters in Texas register through voter deputies stationed in community areas. According to Votebeat, volunteer deputies are legally required to bring all completed applications to county election officials, but that doesn't always ensure they get properly recorded.

Brenda Nuñez, a Nueces County voter registration supervisor, told the outlet that her team was "flooded" with phone calls from voters who were not able to vote because they were not on the rolls. They also received alerts of people who couldn't vote in their counties of residence because their addresses were not properly updated.

Nuñez said her team does their best to get voter applications in the system, but "errors" both by voters and her team "can happen."

Multiple registration officials accross Texas explained that issues such as illegible handwriting, incorrect information, and unchecked boxes in application forms sometimes result in rejected or incomplete voter applications. Moreover, voters sometimes input the wrong contact information, making it harder for deputies or county registration workers to reach out and help them correct their applications.

Voter applications received by DPS are also subject to errors. According to Votebeat, Texas DPS handles 2 million voter registrations per year. However, that figure surpassed 3 million people in just the first eight months of this year.

Public records obtained by Votebeat show election officials from at least 41 different counties contacted the agency in the past two years about more than 100 people who said they registered to vote at DPS, but didn't make it to the rolls.

DPS officials didn't respond to specific questions about the applications that failed to make it to county election officials. Multiple sources also told the news agency that DPS is not considered the most reliable when it comes to voter registration.

Per state law, a voter whose DPS registration doesn't come up on the voter rolls at the polls can cast a provisional ballot. Election officials are legally required to investigate and your vote is counted if your application is found and meets eligibility requirements. Days after Election Day, voters are notified by mail whether or not their provisional ballot was counted.

Votebeat's investigation revealed more than half of the nearly 39,000 provisional ballots cast in the state in the 2022 general election were due to the voter not being on an eligible voter list.

Critics say online voter registration could lead to more accurate voter rolls in Texas. When asked about offering online registration, the Texas Secretary of State's office said that it would require legislative action.

Texas lawmakers last discussed the issue in a 2015 hearing. Republicans raised concerns about voter fraud and identify theft. Texas Governor Greg Abbott has yet to publicly take a stance.

Meanwhile Republican leaders from Kentucky and Alabama -- red states who do offer online voter registration -- said that implementing online voter registration led to more accurate voter rolls, and in Kentucky's case, also "saved the state millions of dollars."