The Secretary of State of Texas is set to depute inspectors to Harris County to observe the process of vote counting. The most populated county in the state includes Houston and has traditionally supported the Democratic Party.
Inspectors will perform what has been termed as random checks of election records plus observe the counting and handling of electronic media and ballots, according to the State’s Office.
Chad Ennis, the forensic audit division state director at the Secretary of State informed Clifford Tatum, the Harris County election administrator that serious breaches had been found in the management of proper election records and the management of the mobile ballot during the 2020 presidential elections.
The letter comes with a week to go before the beginning of early elections in Texas. Ennis alleged that preliminary verdicts in the audit done by officials have detected at least fourteen locations where the chain-of-custody papers were either incomplete or even missing in some cases.
Secretary Of State Officials Will Provide Officials To Perform Random Checks At Harris County
Based on these findings Ennis mentioned that the office of the Secretary of State will provide what it termed as a ‘contingent of inspectors’ to Harris County to execute random checks on records and act as observers during the counting and handling of electronic and media ballots.
Ken Paxton, the Texas Attorney General’s office has also approved the dispatch of a special force to Harris County and it will be made available, as Ennis wrote, wholly during the period of election to respond immediately to legal issues that were identified by inspectors, voters, poll watchers, and the Secretary of State.
The office of the Secretary of State has stated that it normally sends officials to other counties during elections and that includes Harris County. It has cited the Texas Election Code, Chapter 34.
A spokesman for the Secretary of State, Sam Taylor, said that trainers and inspectors will be on the spot to help officials of Harris County and ensure that the process of election is smooth and secure in the midterms.