Error causes backlog of thousands of Texas voter registration applications

A Texas system error left tens of thousands of voter registration applications unprocessed for months, forcing county election officials to race to process the large backlogs weeks out from the midterm elections.

The Texas secretary of state’s office alerted election officials to the issue last week involving a problem with the Department of Public Safety’s (DPS) system. When certain applications were missing information, they were not sent to county officials responsible for processing registrations.

The delayed records began reaching local election offices Tuesday. News outlet Votebeat was first to report the issue.

The size of the backlog varies by county. Bexar County, which includes San Antonio, received more than 45,000 records, while Travis County, anchored by the city of Austin, received more than 35,000. The statewide total has not yet been disclosed.

A portion of the records are new voter registrations, while others are changes to existing voter information or duplicate records. Election officials must review and sort through them to determine which applications need to be processed.

The problem comes shortly before the Oct. 5 deadline for Texans to register for the Nov. 3 elections. Early voting begins Oct. 19.

Bexar County Elections Administrator Michele Carew said in a statement that work is currently underway to process the hefty backlog.

“While that number may seem high, the Elections team is already hard at work reviewing every application and will be extending hours to make sure all records are updated well before early voting begins,” Carew said.

The error does not necessarily mean affected voters will be unable to cast a ballot.

Texas secretary of state spokesperson Alicia Pierce told NBC News that someone who believes they registered but is missing from the voter rolls can vote provisionally, and election officials can later review DPS information.

Texas has several closely watched statewide elections this year, including a battle between Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) and state Rep. James Talarico (D) for a Senate seat.

In a statement to NBC News, Talarico slammed the state over the “unacceptable” system error and encouraged voters to confirm that their registration is valid.

“Less than two weeks before the voter registration deadline, thousands of Texans are now in the dark about their voter registration status — even more aren’t aware of this error at all,” he said. “This is what a broken, corrupt political system looks like: Texans follow the rules, register to vote before the deadline, and still risk losing their God-given right to the ballot box because their government failed to do its job.”