Mail-in ballots will arrive to Harris County voters soon, but there's concern many will be rejected
HARRIS COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) -- As Election Day approaches, Harris County leaders talked about mail-in ballot concerns and what they're doing to fix their issues after ballots were missed during the primary.
WITH MAIL-IN BALLOT CHANGES MADE IN 2021, SEVERAL REJECTIONS TOOK PLACE IN 2022
In 2022, Republicans passed an election integrity bill. They said it would be necessary to make elections more secure.
Part of the legislation creates more accountability for mail-in ballots. Voters must now provide an identification number, either their driver's license or part of their Social Security number.
During the primary, many left it blank, or it didn't match their voter registration. This caused many ballots to be rejected.
With the midterm election weeks away, Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis held a news conference Monday to educate voters on the changes to avoid what happened earlier this year.
"This is unacceptable. It is un-American," Ellis said. "Every voter has a right to vote free from burden, harm or obstacle."
Harris County election officials have a grassroots campaign to educate voters. The state does too.
The secretary of state's office said it's working to inform voters, especially seniors, about the changes. It even has a grassroots tour underway to inform people.
MAIL-IN BALLOT REJECTION RATES STARTED HIGH BUT DROPPED DURING RUNOFF RACES
ABC13 obtained mail-in ballot rejection rates by county from the secretary of state's office. It shows that the number of rejected ballots dropped significantly from the primary election to the runoffs.
To give you an idea, in Harris County, during the Democratic primary, 18% of mail-in ballots were rejected. During the runoff, it fell to 6%. In the Republican primary, 20% of mail-in ballots were rejected in Harris County. It dropped to 8% in the runoff.
County Administrator Clifford Tatum said there could be a reason why.
"Because our residents have seen this process once, twice, three times.Now they feel a little bit more comfortable about what it is they're required to do," Tatum said.
So far, 66,000 voters have requested a mail-in ballot in Harris County for the upcoming election. If you want to check out county mail-in ballot rejection rates from this year, click here.
HARRIS COUNTY WILL SOON SHOW WHAT'S BEEN CORRECTED AFTER 10,000 BALLOTS WERE FOUND DAYS AFTER THE PRIMARY
Mail-in ballots aren't the only concern in Harris County. Earlier this year, 10,000 votes were found days after the primary.
The election administrator resigned. Tatum was hired.
We asked him about what's changed ahead of this election.
"I'm pleased to say the things that I've seen the team implement and that I've seen take place in the logic and accuracy testing, which was here a couple of weeks ago, we're on the right track to make sure that type of thing doesn't happen in this upcoming election," Tatum explained.
Next week, the county will welcome ABC13 to an open house to take a look at what's been corrected.
"Protocols, processes, and procedures have been put into place to avoid that type of issue from occurring again. It becomes a matter of checks and balances," Tatum explained.
Harris County leaders expect 65% of voters to vote during the midterm. It could take a while too.
The ballot in the county is the largest in the state. There will be 782 voting locations on Election Day, but officials say if you want to avoid lines, visit one of the 99 early voting locations.
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SEE ALSO: Can Democrats win Texas elections? Here are the state of the races as elections near
