Republican megadonor Steven Hotze filed a lawsuit seeking the removal of tens of thousands of ineligible voters from the roll of Texas’ biggest county.
The lawsuit—filed by Hotze alongside two Republican legislative candidates against Harris County Voter Registrar Ann Harris Bennett—argued that there are tens of thousands of ineligible voters who should be removed from the voter rolls of Harris County, home to Houston, before the November 5 election.
“Permitting voters to cast ballots when they are not entitled to vote is a frontal assault on democracy and a constitutional republic,” the complaint reads.
Hotze, a physician, radio host and conservative activist, accused Bennett of not maintaining “the integrity of the Harris County voter registration role.”
(File image) People hold signs supporting political candidates amid early voting in Houston on October 30, 2020. A GOP megadonor filed a lawsuit challenging the eligibility of thousands of voters in Harris County.
JULIA BENARROUS/AFP via Getty Images
He raised concerns about the voter roles containing “felons, dead people, out-of-county residents; non-citizens, voters who have not been properly registered, and registered voters who have either not been placed on suspense or are on suspense but have not properly filled out a statement of residence form.”
“By failing to perform her statutorily mandated job, Houston citizens are left with the probability that persons who are currently listed as validly registered Harris County registered voters, are not actually entitled to cast a ballot in this current or future election cycles in Harris County,” the complaint reads.
Newsweek reached out to Bennett’s office and an attorney for Hotze for comment via email.
The lawsuit was filed on October 18 along with state senate candidate Joseph Trahan and congressional candidate Caroline Kane.
After Trump’s loss in the 2020 presidential race, some Republicans have raised concerns about widespread voter fraud. There has been no evidence of widespread fraud; there have been individual cases, but voter fraud remains rare, reported the Associated Press. Audits have upheld the integrity of the 2020 election in key states.
Democrats have invested more in Texas this year in hopes that suburban shifts and growth of cities like Austin or Dallas can make the state more competitive, but former President Donald Trump is still favored to beat Vice President Kamala Harris in the Lone Star State.
Several polls point to a closer Senate election in the race between GOP Senator Ted Cruz and Democratic Representative Colin Allred, but the Republican incumbent is still viewed as a favorite to win reelection.
On Tuesday, FiveThirtyEight’s polling aggregate showed Trump up 7.7 points in Texas, while Cruz led Allred by 3.4 points. Trump won Texas by about 5.6 points in 2020.
Harris County is the largest in Texas. Democrats would rely on strong margins in urban areas like Houston to win statewide. It backed Biden by about 13 points in 2020.
Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson, a Republican, released a statement earlier in October reassuring voters that the elections in the state will be secure.
“Texas leads the way when it comes to election security, and I want voters to know our state and county officials are ready for the November election,” Nelson said. “Many security protocols are new, and others have been around for decades, but Texans deserve to know the ways we are working to secure their votes.”