Groups representing election officials across Texas are asking the state to halt the rollout of its updated voter registration system and address issues that they say 鈥渄irectly impact key parts of the election and jury process.鈥�
The groups outlined their complaints in a letter sent Friday to Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson.
County election officials across the state have for months reported problems that they say began when the state overhauled its voter registration system, known as TEAM, in July. Those issues contributed to a backlog of tens of thousands of voter registration applications, , though that now has nearly been cleared. Election officials also said issues with TEAM were affecting their preparations for the upcoming constitutional amendment election.
Alicia Pierce, the Texas Secretary of State鈥檚 Office spokesperson, told Votebeat the office has received the letter and is reviewing it. 鈥淥ur focus right now is making sure every county is ready for the Nov. 4 election.鈥�
Groups cite TEAM鈥檚 inconsistent performance
The letter to Nelson was sent by four associations representing Texas county election administrators, county and district clerks, county judges and commissioners, and tax assessor-collectors, all of whom have roles in administering elections.
, as well as in interviews with at least a dozen election officials, they said that while using the new system and inputting voter registration applications, voters鈥� previous addresses override their new ones, their voting precincts don鈥檛 populate correctly, and sometimes the registration information doesn鈥檛 save. Officials also said the system is inconsistent, working properly one day but slowly the next.
鈥淐ounties have seen substantial delays in processing voter registration applications and updating registration status,鈥� the letter to Nelson said. 鈥淢any election officials have observed TEAM incorrectly generating the voter registration list, which compromises election security by complicating the update of poll books and the identification of voters who have received a mail ballot.鈥�
Now, with early voting set to start Monday, election officials across the state want Nelson鈥檚 office to resolve existing problems before rolling out any new system features.
鈥淲ithout these changes, the current state of the TEAM rollout creates undue risk to voters and the integrity of election officials,鈥� the letter says.
The officials also said in the letter that the issues are affecting several smaller Texas counties that rely on TEAM to pull their jury list. 鈥淒istrict clerks have documented the new system solely pulling registered voters as jurors instead of those qualified to serve on a jury,鈥� it says.
Calling for solutions and a clearer timeline
Chris McGinn, the executive director of the Texas Association of County Election Officials, said the associations sent the letter after weeks of meeting with the state, presenting the problems, and waiting for solutions.
鈥淚t鈥檚 now the week before early voting and we were still dealing with significant issues,鈥� McGinn said. 鈥淲e felt it was important to put all of this on the record for the secretary of state.鈥�
In their letter, election officials asked the Texas Secretary of State鈥檚 Office to provide a clear timeline for TEAM bug fixes and publish weekly status updates detailing resolved and outstanding issues. Specifically, officials are seeking 鈥渃lear communication about the problems that have been solved,鈥� the letter says.
During early voting and the canvass, election officials want the state to establish 鈥渁 dedicated incident response team,鈥� staffed with technicians who can implement emergency fixes.
Democratic lawmakers apply pressure
Some lawmakers are also asking Nelson to take action.
On Thursday, six state representatives from the Austin area that says the issues with the system aren鈥檛 the fault of the county election officials, who she says have been 鈥渨orking tirelessly within the limits of the tools provided.鈥�
The responsibility, the letter says, 鈥渞ests with the Secretary of State鈥檚 Office to ensure that the system functions as promised, that training on the TEAM software is accessible and thorough, and that voters are not denied their constitutional right to participate in their democracy.鈥�
The letter was authored by state Rep. and signed by state Reps. Donna Howard, Sheryl Cole, Gina Hinojosa, James Talerico, and Lulu Flores, all Democrats.
that her office had anticipated technical problems with the rollout of such a big update, which involved 鈥渢he migration of over 20 million records and extensive training with our county partners.鈥�
Nelson also said the used by multiple counties unexpectedly complicated the rollout, prompting several counties to abruptly switch to TEAM.
鈥淥ur staff has completed onboarding 11 of those counties, including Bexar County, onto our TEAM system,鈥� Nelson wrote, according to a copy of her response provided by Alicia Pierce, a spokesperson for her office. 鈥淲e did this in a matter of weeks for a process that usually takes months.鈥�
To check the status of your voter registration application, go to or .