HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — Paper ballot shortages and long waits for help during Harris County’s November 2022 election came under the microscope Thursday at a hearing in Austin.
What happened in Harris County was just one of several topics lawmakers touched on, but it’s the one that got heated at one point.
Keith Ingram is the director of elections for the Texas Secretary of State’s Office.
He was invited to testify about Texas elections in general during the House Elections Committee’s first meeting this session.
Ingram said Harris County’s 2022 primaries "were just bad."
He said the challenges under then-Elections Administrator Isabel Longoria “were some of the worst we’ve seen.”
Then Ingram said the November general election run by current Elections Administrator Clifford Tatum “had its challenges, but it was one of the best elections we’ve seen out of Harris County since Stan Stanart was clerk” in 2018.
Republican Representative Valoree Swanson of Spring brought up the paper ballot shortages and the hours-long struggle some election judges had getting help over the phone.
“I don’t know anyone in Harris County who would agree with you. We think it was an absolute disaster, and it’s not just a ‘Oops, we had a logistical problem,' when great numbers of polling places were not given enough paper," Swanson said.
Ingram shot back, saying to not take his words out of context.
"It was the best election they’ve had since they’ve had an EA. That is, again, a very low bar," Ingram said.
Ingram and others noted that the sheer size, population and traffic in Harris County can make troubleshooting challenging.
Ingram suggested prepositioning materials like ballot paper in “hotspots” around the region to fix any issues quickly.
When asked about possible impacts on turnout, the elections director said he’s hopeful voters took advantage of countywide voting and went somewhere else.