“The concern is that there are too many hurdles for voters to go through,” said Leah Shah, director of communications for Harris County elections.
of the 7,243 mail ballots that Harris County has received so far, just over 2,700 — or 38 percent — were flagged specifically because there was no ID. Likewise, the county’s rate of rejection for mail ballot applications, 14 percent, is more than double the 6 percent rate seen in the 2018 primary.
Texas’s controversial new law, Senate Bill 1, is part of a raft of GOP-crafted legislation passed in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. The bill’s backers contend the new restrictions are needed to ensure election integrity, but critics say the measure is meant to suppress Democratic votes in upcoming races.
Shah cited a variety of reasons why mail-in voters might fail to comply with the new ID requirement: Those accustomed to avoiding disclosure of personal information through the mail might find the new requirement confusing; the fine print may be easily overlooked; and the “rushed” process has meant little time to get voters up to speed on the new changes.