Texas has some of the strictest voting rules, but Republican lawmakers are now hoping to outlaw efforts by local officials in places like Harris County intended to widen access for voters, including drive-thru voting and extended early voting hours.
Texas already has some of the strictest voting rules in the country. Some restrictions being proposed in other states are aimed at voting rules that aren’t allowed in Texas, including no excuse voting by mail and automatic voter registration.
Legislation filed by Cain, House Bill 6, includes a prohibition on proactively sending out applications to vote by mail. State Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, who also appeared with Abbott proposed a similar prohibition in separate legislation as well as legislation that would prohibit Harris County’s extended early voting hours.
During his remarks, Abbott noted that the outcome of local elections in the past had been “altered by election fraud.” His office did not immediately provide specifics about which elections he meant.