Texas party chairs focused on voting integrity, voter mobilization ahead of early voting

LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) - Early voting in Texas begins Monday, Oct. 24. Ahead of the polls opening, the chairmen of the Texas Republican and Texas Democratic parties are energizing their voters and reviewing the voting process.

“Texas has some of the most extreme voter laws in the entire nation. It is harder to vote in Texas than any other state in the entire country,” Gilberto Hinojosa, the Chairman of the Texas Democratic Party, said.

Hinojosa is referring to voting laws brought on by the codification of Texas Senate Bill 1 by Governor Abbott in September 2021.

The bill, proposed by state Republicans, established new voting restrictions in the state following the 2020 Presidential election.

“This is a sinister, orchestrated effort by the Republican Party to jam things up in elections offices,” Hinojosa said.

Senate Bill 1 reconstructed how and when Texans could cast their ballot. It expanded voting hours to ensure polling locations were open for nine hours a day, added new identification requirements for voting by mail, and expanded the power of partisan poll-watchers at voting locations.

Matthew Rinaldi, Chairman of the Texas Republican Party, says the bill was enacted to protect election integrity and prevent voter suppression.

“Voters care about the integrity of elections. We want to ensure that everyone who casts a ballot and is eligible to cast a ballot gets their vote counted,” Rinaldi said.

Though tensions are high over election integrity and the accuracy of election results, Republicans and Democrats are both working hard to get voters out to the polls.

Former President Donald Trump is making a trip to South Texas this weekend to offer his endorsement of Republican candidates, while Democrat Beto O’Rourke has recently wrapped up a state-wide college tour.

“In this - the most important election we’ve had - we’re not taking it for granted. We’ve put together the greatest mobilization effort we’ve seen in the Republican Party,” Rinaldi said.

Information on voting times and locations in Lubbock County can be found at votelubbock.org.