In Harris County, 291,376 voter registrations are currently “in suspense.”
Do you need to determine if your name is “in suspense” on the voter list?
Search for it here: (Note: list works best on laptops/computers)
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1fKlLjrpKcxmbvh9Z9xVZ3FJG18tf06g0W3pGXPJP4uA/edit?gid=0#gid=0
More than one million voters have been purged from the voter rolls, a routine process to remove voters who have moved or died. More than 2.1 million voter registrations have been placed “in suspense,” which does not necessarily mean they cannot cast a ballot.
Once a voter registers, their registration is recorded, but they should also verify their status, especially if they changed their name or address. In Texas, those changes can be made online. You can verify your details on the Texas Secretary of State’s website.
To log in, you will need your
- Driver’s license number and date of birth, or
- Your first and last name, date of birth, and county where you live,
- Your date of birth and Voter Unique Identifier Number appear on your voter registration certificate.
Once election officials verify their registration, voters receive a registration certificate within 30 days. They receive a new certificate if they update their voter information, or they receive a new certificate every two years.
If the voter receives a non-deliverable notice or is notified that their address has changed, they are placed on the “in-suspense” voter status and will be required to confirm their address.
“It doesn’t affect your ability to vote. If you’re on the suspense list, you can vote when you show up at the polls,” said voting rights activist Pam Gaskin. “They’re gonna ask you to sign an affidavit of residency so that you tell them, ‘This is where I live.’”
There is another way a voter can be placed on the suspense list: In Texas, private individuals can challenge another person’s eligibility to vote. These challenges can be made by written statements and are based on personal knowledge. “This way does happen a lot to Black and brown people,” Gaskin said.
These voters can still vote — they just have to update or confirm their address before the voter registration deadline or fill out a “statement of residence” when voting. However, if they move to a different county or precinct, they must re-register. If they do not take action, they are removed from the voter rolls after four years.
You can register to vote until Oct. 7
- Through the voter registrar’s office in your county,
- A volunteer deputy voter registrar (ex. organizations like the League of Women Voters),
- By mailing the application to the voter registrar in your county (it must be postmarked by the Oct. 7 deadline).
Applications can be found at county voter registrars’ offices, some post offices, government offices, high schools, and online.
Editorial note: For this article, the Houston Defender filed a public records request at the Harris County Ann Harris Bennett Tax Assessor-Collector & Voter Registrar Office. Only the names of the “in suspense” voters have been published.
