A law that will give voters more time to vote across the state means election offices have to find more workers. That isn’t an easy task in rural Texas.
Natalia Contreras
Natalia Contreras covers election administration and voting access for Votebeat in partnership with The Texas Tribune. She has covered a range of topics as a community journalist including local government, public safety, immigration and social issues. Natalia previously reported for the Austin American-Statesman, focusing on impacts of government policies on communities of color. Natalia previously worked at the Indianapolis Star, where she helped launch the first Spanish-language newsletter, and at the Corpus Christi Caller-Times. She was born in Tampico, Tamaulipas in Mexico and grew up in Corpus Christi, Texas. She is based in Corpus Christi.
Posted in
Texas Legislature 2023
Harris County’s election chief remains in legal limbo after judge rules that lawmakers can’t dissolve the position
Republican lawmakers targeted the Harris County elections department during this year’s regular session after numerous issues arose out of the 2022 election.
Posted in
2023 Session Recap
Texas begins withdrawal from multistate partnership to clean voter rolls
A new GOP-backed state law requires Texas to create its own version of a cross-check program or find a vendor that doesn’t cost more than $100,000.
Posted in
2023 Session Recap
Texas Republican leaders want to improve elections in the state’s largest county. Their solution could backfire.
Unless a judge intervenes, Harris County is expected to dissolve its elections administration office later this year. The duties of running elections will once again be split between the county’s tax assessor and clerk.
Posted in
2023 Session Recap
Voting by mail in Texas will get a little easier with these legislative fixes
Two bipartisan bills passed this session will give voters more time and opportunities to fix mistakes when they request and return ballots by mail.
Posted in
Texas Legislature 2023
Gov. Greg Abbott vetoes bill that would give people with disabilities new option to vote by mail
The bipartisan legislation was long sought by advocates for disabled voters, including some of the governor’s own allies.
Posted in
Politics
Tarrant County picks deputy county clerk to run elections, eschewing GOP activist
The county’s Election Commission unanimously appointed Clinton Ludwig to the job. None of the three finalists had any election administration experience.
Posted in
Politics
GOP donor, voter fraud activist is a finalist to run elections in Tarrant County
Karen Wiseman previously sued former election administrator Heider Garcia and participated in a right-wing group’s search for 2020 voter fraud. She’s one of the three finalists, none of whom have experience running elections.
Posted in
2023 Session Recap
Texas is set to improve in-person and mail-in voting for people with disabilities
Voters with disabilities have been pushing for more accessibility for years. This legislative session two bills gained bipartisan support.
Posted in
Texas Legislature 2023
Harris County elections face state intervention under new Texas voting laws
The bill’s sponsor says greater oversight is needed for Texas’ largest county as county officials have vowed to fight the legislation in court.
