Brazos County Election Officials Discuss Voter Registration Challenges

Multiple groups in Brazos County file voter registration challenges on grounds of residency

In a recent public announcement, local election officials in Brazos County, Texas disclosed that several groups are actively challenging voter registration on the grounds of residency. These challenges are entirely legal under Texas election law, provided the voters involved reside in the same county.

To challenge a voter’s registration, an affidavit specifying the voter and affirming personal knowledge of potential invalidity in the voter’s registration must be submitted. The responsibility of handling these challenges falls to the county election officials, who then send a confirmation note to the address on record. This procedure provides the individual under scrutiny an opportunity to update their information. However, failure to respond to the notice leaves the registration in a state of suspense, though it does not prevent the individual from voting.

Voter registration challenges on the rise

About two months ago, Brazos County election administrator Trudy Hancock noted a significant influx of filings for voter registration challenges. “I had a voter drop off a big packet yesterday that had a substantial number in it”, Hancock quoted. She elaborated that the challenges seem to be originating from multiple groups within the county. These groups are reportedly utilizing public records and databases, specifically the National Change of Address (NCOA) database through the postal service.

In Tuesday’s commissioner’s court meeting, a resident associated with one of these groups spoke about ongoing efforts to file voter registration challenges, referring to it as an activity of ‘cleaning up’ the voter rolls. The concerned resident, Cynde Wiley, took the stand arguing, “Our voter registration rolls are dirty. And I don’t know why they’re dirty, there’s a lot of work that needs to be done on them,”.

Maintaining an accurate and clean voter roll

Trudy Hancock, who administers the election voting process in the county, stated that her team is dedicated and relentless in making sure that every legal voter gets a fair chance to vote. She emphasized, “We follow the law and be sure that all the i’s are dotted, all the t’s are crossed so someone is not disenfranchised and not allowed to vote that should be afforded that right,”. While various groups are making an effort to clean up the voter registration rolls, not all of their charges get substantial traction.

An advisory from the Secretary of State’s office has cautioned election officials about these groups, elucidating that affidavits filed using the NCOA information do not qualify as ‘personal knowledge.’ Hancock also pointed out that most of the data these groups have is outdated.

Keeping Voter Registration Information Up-to-date

Hancock further urged voters to verify their registration status and ensure all information is up-to-date. Measures such as limited or provisional ballots are in place to ensure that eligible voters can vote. If you are unsure of your registration status, you can check this information at the Texas Secretary of State office or by contacting the Brazos County Election Administration office.