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High numbers of mail ballots are being rejected in Texas under a new state law

时间:2022-10-10 02:08来源:互联网 提供网友:nan   字体: [ ]
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High numbers of mail ballots2 are being rejected in Texas under a new state law

Transcript3

Weeks ahead of the state's March 1 primary, local election officials in Texas are sending mail-in ballots back to thousands of voters who had turned them in, citing issues with ID requirements created by the state's controversial new voting law.

In Harris County — Texas' largest county, which is home to Houston — election officials said they'd received 6,548 mail-in ballots as of Saturday and had returned almost 2,500 — nearly 38% — for correction because of an incorrect ID.

That's a far higher rejection4 rate than is typical.

Isabel Longoria, the Harris County elections administrator5, says it's a serious problem.

"Mail ballots are people's votes," Longoria says. "So, I am very concerned — not just with the complexity6 of the process, but how that added complexity is going to increase the number of mail ballots that we have to reject."

Voting for the March 1 primary that is currently underway in Texas is the first big election held in the state since Senate Bill 1, a GOP-backed law that introduced sweeping7 changes to the Texas election code, went into effect.

Why mail ballots are being rejected

Across the country, several states have cracked down on their vote-by-mail programs following the 2020 election. Texas, however, already had one of the most limited programs. Only voters who are over 65, disabled, out of town or in jail are able to cast a mail-in ballot1 in Texas.

Despite warnings from groups representing older voters and voters with disabilities, state lawmakers included new restrictions8 for vote by mail in the law.

SB 1 requires that the ID voters use when they vote by mail — whether it's a driver's license9 number or partial Social Security number — matches what's on their voter registration10 record. This new rule applies to both the application to vote by mail as well as the return envelope voters use to send their ballot back to election officials.

This requirement has already tripped up thousands of voters applying for a mail-in ballot who didn't remember what ID they used to register — sometimes decades ago.

Chris Davis, the elections administrator in Williamson County north of Austin, says he and many other local officials were nervous this problem would be even bigger as voters returned their ballots.

"All of us county election officials are unfortunately anticipating a higher number of mail ballot rejections," he says. "And the window to fix that is much, much narrower."

How ballot issues can be fixed11

James Slattery, a senior staff attorney with the Texas Civil Rights Project, says election officials and voters face a big-time crunch12 when it comes to sorting out any ID issues that arise with a returned vote-by-mail ballot.

"Basically if there is a problem with your ID number on a vote-by-mail ballot return envelope, the process depends on when the problem is identified," he says.

If the problem is caught very early, election officials can send the ballot back to be fixed and then the voter can mail it back again. However, Slattery says a lot of issues with vote-by-mail ballots are identified late in the game. That's because sometimes it takes awhile for the ballot to get mailed to the voter. People also like to take their time with their ballot, he says, so they return it pretty close to the deadline.

Slattery says that's why it's more likely that election officials will have to resort to another process.

"The county may — but is not required to — contact the voter and say, 'You can either cancel your mail ballot and vote in person, or come to the clerk's office in person within six days of the election to fix the problem,' " he says. "That is a very convoluted13 process ... that obviously is not helpful for people who are not in Texas."

State election officials say there are steps voters can take to prevent these issues.

Sam Taylor, assistant secretary of state for communications, says a Texas voter who is already registered can update their registration online — even after the registration deadline — on a new website the state created to make sure it has all the IDs the voter uses.

"You are not changing anything by adding information to your voter registration record, you are just making it more complete," he says. "So that doesn't start the clock over in terms of whether or not you were registered by the deadline for the March primary."

But Grace Chimene, president of the League of Women Voters of Texas, says that's not an ideal solution — especially for older and disabled voters.

"To be told that there's changes like this and then the expectation that they are supposed to log on in a complicated manner and be able to figure out how to update their voter registration card, I think it is really a shame," she says.

Taylor says his office is also recommending that voters provide both their Social Security and driver's license numbers — if they have them — on their application and return ballots, just in case.

Taylor says state election officials do not want to see vote-by-mail ballots get rejected.

"The secretary's stated open position is that we hope that number is zero," he says. "Obviously, we don't want anyone who is eligible14 to vote by mail to have their ballot-by-mail application rejected, or to have their ballot rejected."

Voting groups in Texas are telling voters to return their mail-in ballots as early as they possibly can; that way there's enough time to fix a problem. And local election officials say they are doing their best to catch voters up on what's changed.

Ultimately, says Harris County's Longoria, county election workers have limited time and limited resources to sort out confusion created by the new voting rules.

"This is not something I can outwork," she says. "No matter how many hours I stay up in the day, no matter how many team members we get here, no matter how many people we put on the phones to help voters — at the end of the day, this hurts voters."


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 ballot jujzB     
n.(不记名)投票,投票总数,投票权;vi.投票
参考例句:
  • The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
  • The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。
2 ballots 06ecb554beff6a03babca6234edefde4     
n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 );选举;选票;投票总数v.(使)投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )
参考例句:
  • They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》
3 transcript JgpzUp     
n.抄本,誊本,副本,肄业证书
参考例句:
  • A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
  • They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。
4 rejection FVpxp     
n.拒绝,被拒,抛弃,被弃
参考例句:
  • He decided not to approach her for fear of rejection.他因怕遭拒绝决定不再去找她。
  • The rejection plunged her into the dark depths of despair.遭到拒绝使她陷入了绝望的深渊。
5 administrator SJeyZ     
n.经营管理者,行政官员
参考例句:
  • The role of administrator absorbed much of Ben's energy.行政职务耗掉本很多精力。
  • He has proved himself capable as administrator.他表现出管理才能。
6 complexity KO9z3     
n.复杂(性),复杂的事物
参考例句:
  • Only now did he understand the full complexity of the problem.直到现在他才明白这一问题的全部复杂性。
  • The complexity of the road map puzzled me.错综复杂的公路图把我搞糊涂了。
7 sweeping ihCzZ4     
adj.范围广大的,一扫无遗的
参考例句:
  • The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
  • Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗?
8 restrictions 81e12dac658cfd4c590486dd6f7523cf     
约束( restriction的名词复数 ); 管制; 制约因素; 带限制性的条件(或规则)
参考例句:
  • I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
  • a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制
9 license B9TzU     
n.执照,许可证,特许;v.许可,特许
参考例句:
  • The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
  • The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。
10 registration ASKzO     
n.登记,注册,挂号
参考例句:
  • Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
  • What's your registration number?你挂的是几号?
11 fixed JsKzzj     
adj.固定的,不变的,准备好的;(计算机)固定的
参考例句:
  • Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗?
  • Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定,我们就不应该随意改变。
12 crunch uOgzM     
n.关键时刻;艰难局面;v.发出碎裂声
参考例句:
  • If it comes to the crunch they'll support us.关键时刻他们是会支持我们的。
  • People who crunch nuts at the movies can be very annoying.看电影时嘎吱作声地嚼干果的人会使人十分讨厌。
13 convoluted NvnzlG     
adj.旋绕的;复杂的
参考例句:
  • The snake slithered through a convoluted path.蛇在羊肠小道上爬行。
  • The policy is so convoluted even college presidents are confused.这项政策太令人费解,甚至连大学校长们也是一头雾水。
14 eligible Cq6xL     
adj.有条件被选中的;(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的
参考例句:
  • He is an eligible young man.他是一个合格的年轻人。
  • Helen married an eligible bachelor.海伦嫁给了一个中意的单身汉。
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