The Texas House of Representatives is in the final stages of passing Senate Bill 1750, which would abolish the Elections Administrator office in only Harris County, and Senate Bill 1933, which would allow for Secretary of State oversight of elections in only Harris County. These bills – which have already been voted out of the Texas Senate – are expected to receive their final vote approval in the Texas House tomorrow.

Republican legislators are again targeting Harris County, singling us out to score cheap political points. This sets a dangerous precedent, and we all know the legislators in Austin won’t stop here – this will lead to more attempts to remove local officials in the state’s most diverse counties,” said County Attorney Christian D. Menefee. “I want to be clear: this fight is not over. We are evaluating our legal options and expect to share more later this week. We cannot and will not allow the state to illegally target Harris County.”

Senate Bill 1750 bars Harris County from using an elections administrator system, sending the elections administration duties to the County Clerk, and the voter registration duties to the Tax Assessor-Collector. Senate Bill 1933 creates a process by which certain persons can file election complaints and trigger Secretary of State oversight on Harris County elections.