Texas SOS finds failures, improved procedures in election audit, but no widespread fraud

On Friday afternoon, Secretary of State Jane Nelson released 2021-22 election audits for four Texas counties, finding several failures and improved procedures but no evidence of widespread voter fraud.

In 2021, the Texas Legislature passed Senate Bill 1 to "detect and punish fraud" following unfounded claims of voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election. The law requires the Secretary of State's office to audit elections in four randomly selected Texas counties for the preceding two years after the most recent November uniform election occurring in an even-numbered year. A drawing is held to randomly choose two counties whose populations are over 300,000 and two that are under 300,000.

“Texas’ audit process provides accountability and insight into how elections are conducted on a county level to ensure the integrity of our elections,” said Secretary Nelson. “While each audit is specific to a county, they include lessons for election officials across the state and offer voters the reassurance that our state’s election processes are thoroughly reviewed.”

On July 28, 2022, the Secretary of State's Office held the drawing to audit the 2021-2022 election period. The counties of Cameron, Eastland, Guadalupe, and Harris were selected.

Below are the highlights of the audit's findings, as submitted by the Secretary of State's Office. Links to the full reports are included.

HARRIS COUNTY AUDIT FINDINGS (PDF OF FULL REPORT)

• In defiance of state law, Harris County failed to estimate and issue the required amount of ballot paper resulting in interruptions in voting in at least 19 polling locations in the November 2022 Election.
• Harris County failed to properly train its election workers to operate new voting equipment, resulting in widespread voting equipment failures in multiple elections.
• Harris County did not follow state law establishing proper voter roll maintenance activities. Harris County failed to keep an accurate list of registered voters in their county records, which has since been addressed and corrected.
• In numerous elections, required paperwork from polling locations was incomplete and failed to meet the requirements outlined in law.

Nelson's office said a preliminary audit of Harris County ahead of the November 2023 election revealed "alarming issues with elections administration that needed to be addressed immediately."

"In response to widespread election administration failures in Harris County, Abbott signed Senate Bill 1750 into law in 2023. The law dissolved the office of the Elections Administrator in Harris County, returned voter registration duties to the Tax Assessor-Collector, and returned election duties to the County Clerk," Nelson's office said. "Though neither of these offices were responsible for the elections that occurred during the audited period, both offices have cooperated with the audit team."

Though Harris County has made changes to its election administration, as required by state law, the Secretary of State's Office said the audit showed an "enhanced presence by the secretary’s office is necessary for the November 2024 election."

That means that the Texas Secretary of State will send inspectors to Harris County this November "to perform checks on election records, including tapes and chain-of-custody, and will observe the handling and counting of ballots and electronic media during the November 2024 election period."

The secretary's elections division will also be present in Harris County throughout the election period, from early voting to Election Day and through tabulation.

Harris County, long a Democratic stronghold, is often targeted by state Republican leadership and had already been fully audited once following the 2020 presidential election, along with Dallas, Tarrant, and Collin counties. The September 2021 announcement of the audits came a day after former President Donald Trump suggested Gov. Greg Abbott, a close Republican ally, order it. The Texas Secretary of State’s Office did not specify what prompted the announcement then.

CAMERON COUNTY AUDIT FINDINGS (PDF OF FULL REPORT)

• Cameron County developed an in-depth election worker training program that provides both legal and procedural training, as well as hands-on training with all election equipment.
• The county did not report the appropriate information to the statewide system for the rejected mail ballot applications in 2022, which was a new requirement. A review of elections conducted since the audit period indicates that Cameron County is now in compliance.

GUADALUPE COUNTY AUDIT FINDINGS (PDF OF FULL REPORT)

• The county elections staff routinely conducts post-election assessments of all processes and procedures. As part of the process, the county addressed self-identified areas of needed improvement and embarked on the development of an interactive curriculum for the community that became known as the Citizens Election Academy.
• Guadalupe County has developed an extensive policies and procedures manual that details the procedural expectations of employees and their assigned functions.

EASTLAND COUNTY AUDIT FINDINGS (PDF OF FULL REPORT)

• After reviewing multiple elections, it is evident that Eastland County has made a considerable effort to improve their process and procedure with each election. Specifically, the evolution of their chain of custody forms demonstrates the county’s effort to improve their tracking of election technology and supplies.
• The county training program should include more detailed instructions and written documentation related to the responsibilities of a presiding judge, as the materials did not prepare election judges with adequate instruction.