Democratic voters in Texas scramble to find polling place amid GOP-driven switch

Hundreds of Democratic voters in Dallas and Williamson Counties, Texas scrambled to find their polling places Tuesday after the local Republican parties refused to hold a joint primary — ending more than a decade of convenient countywide voting.

The Republican Parties of each county refused to agree to a joint primary election, which would have let both parties agree to hold their primaries together at the same locations and under shared administration.

Because one party declined, state law requires the other to revert to strict precinct-based voting on Election Day — meaning voters must go to their specific assigned precinct polling place for their party.

“Let’s be clear about what happened here. Both counties have spent a million dollars trying to get the word out about this change — a million dollars of taxpayer money that didn’t need to be spent,” Kendall Scudder, chairman of the Texas Democratic Party, said in a statement. “Democrats pushed for a joint election. As it has been for eight years, it would have been cheaper, simpler, and more accessible for every voter in the county. Republicans said no.”

Early voting had been countywide and saw record Democratic turnout, but the switch to precinct-only locations left many voters showing up at the wrong spot and being turned away on Election Day.

Both leading candidates in the competitive Democratic U.S. Senate primary race responded quickly, urging voters not to give up while calling for extended polling hours to make sure they can vote.

“Both Dallas and Williamson County voters have grown accustomed to countywide voting, including on Election Day. This effort to suppress the vote, to confuse and inconvenience voters, is having its intended effect as people are being turned away from the polls,” U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D) said in a statement. “I’m asking all voters in Dallas and Williamson Counties to check their county’s election website or their voter registration card and identify the correct polling location for today. Do not give up and do not give in.”

State Rep. James Talarico (D) also released a statement through his campaign addressing the reports of voters being turned away.

“We are deeply concerned about the reports of voters being turned away from the polls in Dallas and Williamson Counties following the GOP’s implementation of precinct-specific voting locations for Election Day,” the campaign wrote. “We will continue to evaluate the situation on the ground and are calling for an extension of voting hours to ensure all Texans’ voices are heard in this critical election.”

A district judge ordered the Democratic primary in Dallas County to extend voting until 9 p.m CT.

Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) requested the Texas Supreme Court to block the order extending voting hours in Dallas County. The Supreme Court obliged, temporarily blocking the counting of votes from any voter who was in line after 7:00pm and ordering election officials to separate out those votes.

This story has been updated.