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Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is considering having a new election in Harris County after ballot issues were discovered. An investigation found that the issue of a lack of ballot paper was more widespread than originally thought.
“An analysis of equipment and voter turnout records conducted by local news outlet KHOU 11 found that 121 voting centers lacked sufficient ballot paper needed to cover voter turnout—more than double the number of centers that Harris County estimated to be affected. The county had previously said 46 to 68 centers ran out of their allotted ballot paper,” Newsweek reported.
“In a statement sent to Newsweek, the Texas secretary of state’s office said that it was first notified of the alleged improprieties in Harris County shortly after Election Day in 2022 and that the information was referred to the Texas attorney general’s office and the Harris County district attorney’s office for investigation,” the outlet added.
The secretary of state’s office said that “we have been collecting even more information to ultimately provide the public with greater clarity on the root causes of the issues witnessed in Harris County during the 2022 General Election.”
“Harris Co. election ballot paper shortage far bigger than initially estimated. It’s so big it may have altered the outcome of elections. It may necessitate new elections. It WILL necessitate new LAWS that prevent Harris Co. from ever doing this again,” the governor said on Twitter.
Harris Co. election ballot paper shortage far bigger than initially estimated.
It's so big it may have altered the outcome of elections.
It may necessitate new elections.
It WILL necessitate new LAWS that prevent Harris Co. from ever doing this again.https://t.co/Bc3YE3ix5E
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) February 1, 2023
Last month, a former county elections commissioner in New York pleaded guilty to applying for absentee ballots in the names of other registered voters.
“Jason Schofield, age 43, of Troy, New York, pled guilty today to unlawfully using the names and dates of birth of voters to fraudulently apply for absentee ballots for elections held in Rensselaer County in 2021. The announcement was made by United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman and Janeen DiGuiseppi, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Schofield was an Elections Commissioner at the Rensselaer County Board of Elections (“RCBOE”) until late last month when he resigned in anticipation of today’s guilty plea,” JD Supra reported.
“In pleading guilty to a 12-count indictment, Schofield admitted that in 2021, he unlawfully possessed and used the names and dates of birth of voters in connection with 12 absentee ballot applications he electronically submitted in the voters’ names to the New York State Voter Absentee Ballot Application Request Portal. Schofield admitted that for each application, he falsely certified that he was the voter requesting the ballot. He also admitted that he took personal possession of 9 of these ballots while knowing and intending that RCBOE records would falsely reflect that the ballots had been mailed to the voters,” the outlet added.
“Sentencing is scheduled for May 12, 2023, before United States District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino. On each count, Schofield faces up to 5 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and a term of post-imprisonment supervised release of up to 3 years. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors. Schofield’s plea agreement required that he immediately resign from the RCBOE,” the outlet continued.
Earlier this year, the FBI arrested Schofield over allegations of an absentee ballot fraud scheme and he was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Daniel J. Stewart.
He was charged with unlawfully using voters’ names and dates of birth to fraudulently apply for absentee ballots for elections held in Rensselaer County in 2021.
Schofield, a Republican, was released on his own recognizance until his trial scheduled before U.S. District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino.
“He is accused of unlawfully possessing and using voters’ names and dates of birth in connection with absentee ballot applications that he submitted to a New York State Board of Elections website in 2021. The indictment alleges that Schofield applied for absentee ballots in the names of people who had no interest in voting in 2021 and did not request absentee ballots or Schofield’s assistance in obtaining absentee ballots,” Fox News reported.
“In some of these instances, the indictment explained, Schofield also took possession of the absentee ballots issued to these voters, brought them to voters, and had them sign absentee ballot envelopes without actually voting. This allegedly allowed Schofield or another person to cast votes in these voters’ names in Rensselaer County’s 2021 primary and general elections,” the outlet added.
“If convicted, Schofield would face up to 5 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and a term of post-imprisonment supervised release of up to 3 years on each of the 12 counts,” the report continued.
