Texas Seeks to Combat Voter Fraud Through Sharing Electoral Data

Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson announced that Texas had signed memorandums of understanding (MOU) to share voter registration data with nine Republican-led states — including Alabama, Arkansas, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Ohio, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia – in order to prevent voter fraud.

“These agreements are a significant step in our ongoing commitment to maintain accurate voter registration lists and upholding the integrity of our elections,” said Secretary Nelson in a statement. The purpose of the memorandums is to allow states to share voter registration data to spot potential duplicate registrations. 

“By working together, we are demonstrating how states can responsibly share information while protecting voter data,” she added. Secretary Nelson also shared her willingness to expand the initiative to include even more states.

Last October, Texas finalized its participation in the Electronic Information Registration Center (ERIC) since GOP members alleged the organization is favoring the Democratic Party. Texas wasn’t the only Republican-led state that withdrew its participation — with once 31 members, now ERIC only holds 25 states and the District of Columbia. 

As reported by Houston Public Media, Daniel Griffith, senior director of policy for the election integrity nonprofit Secure Democracy USA warned about the potential risk of eligible voters getting misidentified or removed from voter rolls.

“The Secretary’s office testified, when ERIC was being considered in the [Texas] Legislature in 2023, they noted that they got over 4 million referrals, and they referred about 900,000 out to the counties for possible investigation.” He added, “It’s difficult to imagine that they’re going to be able to match that level, that kind of number, in an agreement with fewer states.”