Texas entered Election Day on Tuesday with more than 7.7 million early ballots in preliminary counts and a Justice Department operation sending approximately 1,000 election monitors and observers to all 50 states.
The federal deployment is the largest in department history, while Texas’ early turnout has already exceeded the modern midterm early-voting record, according to the state-derived tally examined by The Dallas Express.
The Justice Department announced the unprecedented nationwide scope on November 3. The Civil Rights Division is coordinating the deployment and maintaining contact with state and local election officials throughout the day.
“Election integrity has been one of the top priorities for this Administration and this Division,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon said in the department’s November 3 release. “I am very proud we are deploying the largest monitoring effort in DOJ history, and pursuing transparency for elections in an assertive and nondiscriminatory manner.”
What Federal Election Monitors Will Examine
The department identified personnel from its Civil Rights Division, other Justice Department offices, U.S. Attorney’s Offices, and federal observers from the Office of Personnel Management. Their responsibilities include examining compliance with the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, and protections for military and overseas voters.
Other personnel will address voting access under the Americans with Disabilities Act and federal prohibitions against intimidation or suppression based on race, color, national origin, or religion. Federal oversight does not by itself establish that misconduct occurred in a monitored jurisdiction.
The department named seven Texas counties for monitoring or observation: Bexar, Dallas, Harris, Waller, Blanco, Bowie, and Nueces.
Texas Early Voting Breaks A Midterm Record
A November 3 election preview from The Dallas Express documented 7,721,552 early ballots in Texas, according to preliminary figures from the Texas Secretary of State tracker, last updated October 30.
The total includes 7,461,862 in-person ballots (96.64%) and 259,690 mail ballots (3.36%), representing approximately 40.6% of the state’s record 19,041,684 registered voters, a figure the secretary of state announced October 16.
The Secretary of State’s office explained October 26 that counties submit and sometimes revise their daily election reports and that statewide totals may not immediately reflect every ballot. Texas’ official early-voting portal provides the underlying county reporting. The high participation figure does not identify which candidates received those votes; Texas voters do not register by political party.
Election Integrity Questions Go Beyond Observers
A separate legal dispute concerns the verification of Texas ballots.
On November 3, The Dallas Express examined a federal complaint from the Potter County Republican Party and its chairman seeking a hand count of paper ballots across Texas before election certification. The plaintiffs seek broader verification than existing state procedures require; their complaint does not establish faulty election totals.
Texas already requires post-election hand-count audits of a sample of electronically tabulated paper ballots under Election Code Section 127.201. The lawsuit seeks a more extensive statewide procedure, and opponents have argued that such a requirement could delay the count. The available November 1 docket information in the DX account did not identify an injunction ordering the proposed count.
Federal prosecutors also announced October 30 charges against five foreign nationals in Texas involving alleged voting or immigration-document offenses. The Dallas Express covered those cases October 31, one of whom was an illegal alien.
In a separate October 19 action, the Justice Department charged 28 foreign nationals in California with election-related offenses. All 28 were lawful permanent residents, commonly known as green card holders, who legally reside in the United States but are not American citizens and cannot legally vote in federal elections.
Beyond Election Day: Counting Every Vote Accurately
Election Day will produce additional votes beyond the early totals.
The Secretary of State’s guidance explains that counties can update or correct preliminary turnout reports. Accurate counts, documented safeguards, and clear distinctions between confirmed findings and allegations remain central to public confidence.
Provided by Dallas Express
