Despite a spate of recent raids the Texas attorney general's office launched to suss out allegations of malicious voter registration efforts and the cumulative removal of more than 1 million names from the state's voter rolls in the past three years, elected Democratic officials and civil rights groups are reminding Texans that there is still time to register to vote in the November general election and to not be dissuaded from participating in democracy.
Attorney General Ken Paxton announced his office carried out search warrants in several Texas counties over the last few weeks as part of his voter registration fraud hunt, and Gov. Greg Abbott last week touted the success of legislation passed in 2021 that has resulted in 1.1 million Texans being purged from voter rolls — moves that voter advocates during a news conference Thursday at the Capitol said were attempts to disenfranchise voters and intimidate minority communities.
"It is very important to stress that even if someone finds themself on the suspense list that they can still vote this election cycle," said state Rep. Lulu Flores, D-Austin.
More: Are you still on Texas voter rolls? Do you need to register? Here's how to check | Grumet
On Wednesday, Paxton's office sued Bexar County for approving an initiative to send voter registration information to unregistered voters in that county, which came after Paxton's raids of private residences in South Texas that prompted civil rights groups and Texas congressional Democrats to ask the U.S. Department of Justice to intervene .
"It is very clear that our message here today is all about letting Texans vote," Austin City Council Member Vanessa Fuentes said Thursday. "Fear cannot and will not dictate our fundamental right; it is our right to vote."
Lydia Camarillo, CEO of the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project, said previous attempts to limit voter participation have failed, including a 2019 lawsuit that successfully fought a voter purge effort and contributed to the resignation of then-Texas Secretary of State David Whitley.
Camarillo pointed to the revamped voter fraud search as a response to the expectation that Texas' minority communities will play a pivotal role in deciding the November election.
"That is the fear that is taking place today in Texas and across red states," Camarillo said of voting fraud searches. "It's impossible to fight democracy without all of us standing for that fight today."
Selena Xie, a board member of Asian Texans for Justice, said concerns over ensuring access to the ballot box run parallel to fighting attempts by the Legislature to pass legislation to limit opportunities for minority groups, such as a proposal to ban people and entities associated with China, Russia, Iran and North Korea from purchasing property in Texas .
"We know that an attack on one immigrant community is an attack on all of us," Xie said.
More: When does early voting start? Here's where Travis County voters can cast their ballot
Voters in Travis County are able to check their voter registration status on VoteTravis.com , which also houses information on polling locations, sample ballots and voting schedules. The deadline to register and be eligible to vote in the Nov. 5 election is Oct. 7.
"It's a sad day in Texas when our leaders try to disenfranchise the vote," said state Rep. Sheryl Cole, D-Austin. "We have seen this before, but we will not be held back."
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Officials encourage voter participation in Austin, across Texas despite AG Ken Paxton push
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