Parts of a 2021 Texas law that instituted changes to the state’s voting laws, known as Senate Bill 1 (SB1), were struck down by a federal court last month. The State of Texas will not appeal the ruling, as the deadline to do so passed earlier in July.
The Office of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton did not respond to The Dallas Express‘s request for comment.
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas ruled that SB1’s provisions that outline to what extent people can help voters cast their ballots could not be enforced. The court found that the provisions violated a 2018 injunction that found similar limitations in Texas’ election code violated the federal Voting Rights Act (VRA).
Plaintiffs argued that SB1 utilized similar language that the court previously rejected through its 2018 injunction, which struck down two provisions of the Texas Election Code for violating Section 208 of the VRA. The 2018 ruling arose from a 2015 lawsuit brought by the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA)-Greater Houston.
OCA-Greater Houston resurrected its lawsuit in January of this year to challenge the language in SB1, asking the court to apply the 2018 injunction to the new Texas law.
Specifically in question were provisions that required interpreters to be registered to vote in the same county as the non-English-speaking voter they are assisting and only allowed assistance to be given at the physical ballot box.
Other provisions in SB1 that were challenged included a mandate that limited voter assistance to helping read and mark a ballot. SB1 also required those providing assistance to take an oath promising to limit their assistance to reading the ballot to the voter and marking their ballot if necessary.
Debbie Chen, the executive vice president of OCA’s national branch, stated earlier this month that the specific provisions in SB1 made voting assistors afraid to answer voters’ questions in the state’s primary elections.
“Asian American voters with limited English often need to ask questions to understand the ballot and the voting process,” Chen said. “This is especially true for people who provide them with assistance and must translate the English ballot and the whole process on the spot.”
U.S. district judge Robert Pittman agreed with the plaintiffs, ruling on June 6 that the SB1 provisions in question were in violation of the 2018 injunction and the VRA.
The judge affirmed that voters could receive assistance throughout the entire voting process, which “includes not only the mechanical reading and marking of a ballot, but all other activities required of voters at a polling place to meaningfully and effectively exercise their right to vote.”
The court also deemed the required oath stipulated by SB1 a violation of Section 208 of the VRA. Finally, the court ordered that Texas implement a plan to revise its training and instruction manuals to comply with the ruling and to clarify to election officials that they should not enforce the struck-down provisions of SB1.
Despite the court striking down certain provisions in the statute, most of SB1 remains law in Texas and stands in compliance with the VRA.
When Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed SB1 into law in September 2021, he said the bill was a win for election integrity and safeguarding voting from fraud.
“One thing that all Texans can agree [on] and that is that we must have trust and confidence in our elections. The bill that I’m about to sign helps to achieve that goal,” Abbott said before signing the bill. “The law does, however, make it harder for fraudulent votes to be cast.”
Abbott signed the bill surrounded by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and the bill’s lead authors, Texas state lawmakers Sen. Bryan Hughes and Rep. Andrew Murr, among others.
Sen. Hughes did not respond to a request for comment by The Dallas Express.
After the bill’s passage in the state senate, Lt. Gov. Patrick celebrated the legislation saying, “SB 1 is about ensuring that every Texan trusts the outcome of every election in Texas.”
“It increases transparency and ensures the voting rules are the same in every county across the state,” added Patrick.
The Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) declined to comment, telling The Dallas Express that its lawyers did not work this case.
However, the TPPF did applaud the legislation after it passed the state senate.
“This bill plugs obvious holes in our election code and will make it harder for bad actors to take advantage of loopholes currently in the system,” said TPPF Senior Fellow Chad Ennis. “It is a direct response to demonstrable fraud that has occurred in Texas.”