HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — Harris County elections officials continue to push back at the Texas Secretary of State’s claim over elections results being delayed.
There’s been a bit of back-and-forth over when they’re legally supposed to be in.
Beth Stevens, the county’s chief director of voting, gave an update Wednesday morning that a majority of the 750 polling location results have been brought to their central election headquarters.
Tuesday night, Texas Secretary of State John Scott said Harris County would not be able to count the votes within 24 hours of the polls closing, which he said is required by a new state law and could be punishable as a Class B misdemeanor.
Harris County election officials argue that not all votes have to be tallied within 24 hours, just that all election boxes show up at their central counting location within that time.
They believe they are right on track to make that 7 p.m. deadline today. Stevens said both political parties have brought in extra people to review anything that needs to be looked at.
“Look the Secretary of State’s Office put out the press release. They jumped the gun,” Stevens said. “I hope their message to our staff who have been working extremely long hours, up to 20 hours a day for the last few weeks. The message to them should be we trust you. We know you’re putting the effort in here.”
She said to also keep in mind that this is Harris County’s first primary election using paper ballots.
There were a lot of learning curves to work out with this process for voters and judges, Stevens said. Election officials also have to verify the chain of custody as well when the ballots and machines arrive at the central location.
Harris County election officials said, although this method is longer for a county this size, it’s more accurate and secure.
Stevens said that by 2026, all counties in the state will be required to use this paper ballot system.