Texas Removes Over 1 Million Voters from Registration Rolls

In a significant move, Texas has eliminated more than a million individuals from its voter registration lists since the 2020 presidential election, as announced by state officials on Monday. Ricardo B. Brazziell/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK

Governor Greg Abbott (R) defended the action, releasing a statement arguing it was part of an initiative to "protect the right to vote and to crackdown on illegal voting."

He elaborated, "These reforms have led to the removal of over one million ineligible people from our voter rolls in the last three years, including noncitizens, deceased voters, and people who moved to another state." Jasper Colt / USA TODAY NETWORK

Abbott emphasized, "Illegal voting in Texas will never be tolerated. We will continue to actively safeguard Texans' sacred right to vote while also aggressively protecting our elections from illegal voting." NASA Johnson Space Center / NASA-JSC/ROBERT MARKOWITZ / Wikimedia

According to data from the governor's office, approximately half of the removed voters were either deceased, had requested removal, or had relocated to another state.

The list also included nearly 7,000 noncitizens who had registered illegally and about 6,000 convicted felons ineligible to vote. Element5 Digital / Pexels

Additionally, 463,000 voters were placed on Texas's "suspense list," reserved for those who fail to respond to certification requests. Mizzu Cho / Pexels

This voter roll purge is part of a broader set of voting restrictions passed by the Texas Legislature following the 2020 presidential election.

At the time of its passage, Abbott claimed the law would "make it easier to vote and harder to cheat" in Texas. World Travel & Tourism Council / Wikimedia

However, critics argue that these measures disproportionately impact voters of color and those with disabilities. Element5 Digital / Pexels

The governor's office reported that of the nearly 6,500 noncitizens removed, about 1,930 have a voting history.

These cases will be forwarded to the Attorney General's office for potential felony charges. Svgalbertian / Wikimedia

This move by Texas aligns with actions taken by other predominantly Republican-controlled states, which implemented new voting restrictions after President Biden's victory over former President Trump in the 2020 election.

That election saw record-high turnout and increased use of mail-in and early voting. Sgt. Charlotte Carulli / Wikimedia

The Texas law responsible for this voter purge also standardizes statewide voting hours, bans drive-through voting (which was implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic), expands poll watcher access, and prohibits mass distribution of mail-in ballot applications. cottonbro studio / Pexels