In what they’re calling “election integrity” fight, Texas lawmakers have removed more than 1 million people from its voter rolls since Republican legislators passed a sweeping voter suppression law three years ago. Governor Greg Abbot recently announced that the state has removed the voters, who include those who moved out of Texas, are deceased, or are noncitizens.
Abbot said the removals represent an effort to “protect the right to vote and to crack down on illegal voting.”
“That removal process has been, and will continue to be, ongoing,” Abbot’s office said. “The Secretary of State and county voter registrars have an ongoing legal requirement to review the voter rolls, remove ineligible voters, and refer any potential illegal voting to the Attorney General’s Office and local authorities for investigation and prosecution.”
The removal effort is part of a sweeping package of voting restrictions the Texas Legislature passed after the 2020 presidential election. At the time, Abbott said the law would make it “easier to vote and harder to cheat” in the Lone Star State.
According to a press release, the highest portion of voters removed from the rolls — over 463,000 — were on the “suspense list,” meaning the county is unaware of the voter’s current address. Abbott’s office said of the over 6,500 noncitizens removed from the voter rolls, about 1,930 have a “voter history” and their records will be sent to the attorney general’s office to investigate and potentially take legal action. Last year, Abbott signed House Bill 1243 into law, which raised the penalty for illegal voting to a felony. Over 6,000 of the voters removed from the rolls have a felony conviction. Critics argue it disproportionately affects voters of color and voters with disabilities.
Every vote counts
Election officials urge people to check their status now because every vote really does matter.
“Closeness matters,” said Bob Stein, a political science professor at Rice University who has been studying elections for decades and served as an expert witness in the state’s election audit. “Think of it like a baseball game: If the score is 10-0 and the umpire makes a bad call, you’ll likely walk away saying, ‘My team wasn’t very good.’ But if it’s a close game, 0-0, and a bad call is made, then you’ll blame the umpire instead of the team.”
Stein’s expertise offers insight into the latest claims by Abbott, who cites the new state laws for ineligible voters being removed from Texas voter rolls.
“There are two sides to this: reinforcing voters’ confidence that elections are conducted fairly, and serving notice to those who might try to vote illegally that they will be prosecuted,” Stein explained. “It’s up to others to judge who benefits from this, but the timing and proximity to the upcoming election seem somewhat concerning.”
Clearing voter rolls isn’t new in Texas. “I don’t consider a million names removed unusual,” Stein said. “It’s likely that as many as half a million people have died, moved, or changed addresses.”
Data from the Texas Secretary of State shows that voter roll removals have not increased significantly in recent years. In 2020, 1.25 million people were removed from the rolls, while in 2019, 683,000 were taken off. The governor’s office did not respond to questions regarding the numbers.
Voter turnout is key
Voter turnout remains critical for both parties. “If voters no longer believe elections—or anything else like gambling in Las Vegas or baseball games—are fair, they won’t participate,” Stein noted.
For those planning to vote in November, the deadline to register is October 7. “It’s really important to check your voter registration,” said Dallana Camargo with the League of Women Voters. “If you haven’t voted in two consecutive federal elections, you might have been removed and need to re-register. Or you may have moved since you last voted.”
