Tarrant County鈥檚 two Democrats in the commissioners court slammed the Election Integrity Task Force on Tuesday, while 20 community members praised the idea during public comment.
Tarrant County Judge Tim O鈥橦are, Sheriff Bill Waybourn and District Attorney Phil Sorrells formed the Election Integrity Task Force earlier this month to prioritize prosecution of election crimes, which are rare in Tarrant County and across the country.
A praised the quality and transparency of Tarrant County鈥檚 elections.
No one from the sheriff鈥檚 or the DA鈥檚 office will be assigned to the task force full time, but they鈥檒l investigate cases of alleged election crime as they come in, the officials told reporters at a press conference on Feb. 8.
Judge O鈥橦are鈥檚 Democratic colleagues on the Tarrant County Commissioners Court condemned the task force at a packed meeting. Commissioner Roy Charles Brooks, who represents Precinct 1 in southwest Tarrant County, addressed O鈥橦are, Waybourn and Sorrells.
鈥淚 am concerned that we are enshrining in our Tarrant County infrastructure the ability to deny the results of any election that the three of you take exception to,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a problem for me.鈥�
That鈥檚 not what the task force is for, Waybourn said.
鈥淚鈥檓 not a conspiracy [theorist],鈥� Waybourn said. 鈥淚 believe that Lee Harvey Oswald killed the president, and I believe that Joe Biden is the president. I believe all that.鈥�
Instead, the task force exists to enforce election law, Waybourn said, and to give people who have questions and election problems a place to go. He said he received 12 complaints in the last week.
Democratic Commissioner Alisa Simmons represents Precinct 2 in southeast Tarrant County. Twelve complaints don鈥檛 鈥渘ecessitate a task force,鈥� she said.
When Simmons asked Waybourn for several actual voter fraud cases, not complaints, Waybourn answered with a question.
鈥淲hen you show up to vote, and they go, 鈥楳rs. Simmons, you already voted,鈥� and you say, 鈥楴o I haven鈥檛,鈥� who do you go to?鈥� Waybourn said.
鈥淚鈥檓 going to Heider Garcia鈥檚 office,鈥� Simmons said. Garcia is the person in charge of the county鈥檚 elections.
The county officials who created the task force have said they never consulted Garcia, by former Texas Secretary of State John Scott, a Republican, as the ideal prototype of an elections administrator. Garcia has also endured due to election denier conspiracy theories.
Simmons has been president of the for a decade, she said. In that role, she directs people to Garcia鈥檚 office all the time.
鈥淲e get complaints as soon as the polls open. I am so accustomed to complaints. There is not a need for an election fraud task force in Tarrant County,鈥� she said.
About 20 members of the public showed up to speak at Commissioners Court, and almost all praised the Election Integrity Task Force. Even more wrote in their support.
鈥淚鈥檓 so proud to see people I elected doing the things I want them to do,鈥� said Denise Linn.
Several people shared unfounded theories about elections. One person cast doubt on the result of the state audit that praised Tarrant County鈥檚 election process. That audit was carried out by Scott, the former Texas Secretary of State.
Amie Roper of Fort Worth hopes the task force finds more instances of voter fraud, she said.
鈥淭here are so many that you鈥檙e never gonna hear about, never get reported,鈥� she said, without offering evidence.
a Democrat on the Tarrant County Early Voting Board, said she鈥檚 鈥渄issatisfied鈥� with the Election Integrity Task Force. Cano told commissioners that both parties lost election workers last year because they were afraid of being prosecuted for a simple mistake. To Cano, better recruitment, pay and training for election workers would do a lot more to keep elections safe, not enforcement after the fact.
鈥淚f someone tried to sell you an alarm system, and their primary selling point was, 鈥榃e鈥檙e gonna investigate it after you get robbed,鈥� you wouldn鈥檛 buy that alarm system,鈥� Cano said.
Got a tip? Email Miranda Suarez at msuarez@kera.org. You can follow Miranda on Twitter @MirandaRSuarez.
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