Texas County Cuts 100 Polling Stations, Limits Early Voting
Texas’ Tarrant County Cuts 100 Polling Stations And Limits Early Voting
Recent months have made it incredibly clear that the Republican Party intends to steal the 2026 midterms by any means necessary, with Texas being at the heart of that effort. Commissioners in Texas’ Tarrant County cut 100 polling stations and reduced early voting stations in a 3-2 vote.
ProPublica reports that the vote reduces the number of polling locations in Tarrant County from 331 to 216. Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare, who leads the commissioners court, said the changes were to cut costs and make elections more efficient. O’Hare defended the reduced polling locations, saying the expected low turnout for a non-presidential election and the ability for Tarrant County residents to vote at any polling location made the extra polling locations unnecessary.
“I would venture to guess 99% of the public cannot name a single thing on (the 2025 ballot),” O’Hare said before the vote.
Judge Tim O’Hare has a history of being generally anti-democracy. O’Hare launched an election integrity unit upon becoming a judge in 2022. In the three years of its existence, the unit has received fewer than 100 allegations of voter fraud. O’Hare and the commissioners’ court also cut funding to provide free bus rides to polling locations for low-income voters. “I don’t believe it’s the county government’s responsibility to try to get more people out to the polls,” O’Hare said at the time.
So the guy in charge of Tarrant County’s election integrity doesn’t think ensuring all Texans can vote regardless of their party or income level is his responsibility. It’s almost like Judge Tim O’Hare doesn’t actually care about election integrity. Who could’ve known?
Earlier this week, President Donald Trump advocated for more Republican led redistricting efforts and a complete end to mail-in voting. His ultimate and genuinely disturbing goal is a 100-seat Republican majority in the House. While yes, this is unrealistic, it also reveals the Republican Party wants America to be under a single-party system. This is inherently undemocratic and essentially how dictatorships take shape.
Texas has been at the heart of President Donald Trump’s efforts to manipulate the 2026 midterms in his favor. The GOP holds a razor-thin majority in the House of Representatives, with Democrats only needing a net gain of three seats to flip control. Texas redrew its electoral maps in 2021, but that didn’t stop President Donald Trump from asking Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to begin a rare, mid-decade redistricting process.
Gov. Abbott used the devastating floods that killed over 100 Texans over the Fourth of July weekend to launch a special legislative session. While flood relief was supposed to be the focus of the legislative session, it became quickly apparent that Texas Republicans were focused on designing a new electoral map that adds five House seats in districts Trump won in the 2024 election.
Democrats nationwide criticized the move as blatant gerrymandering. Texas Democrats used every tool at their disposal to protest the Texas redistricting effort, from staging filibusters to leaving the state to break quorum. Gov. Abbott ordered the civil arrest of the Texas Democrats who left the state and filed a lawsuit to remove state House Rep. Gene Wu from his seat. U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) even requested the FBI hunt down the Texas Democrats.
The Texas Democrats returned to the state last weekend after the first special session ended without a vote. Returning to the state of their own accord wasn’t enough for Texas Republicans, as House Speaker Dustin Burrows told the Texas Democrats they wouldn’t be able to leave the state House without signing a slip agreeing to police surveillance.
State Rep. Nicole Collier refused to sign the slip and was held as a political prisoner in the House chamber. Several other Democratic reps who initially signed their slips ripped them up and joined Collier in protest. Texas Republicans ultimately passed the new map on Wednesday in an 88-52 vote.
Texans affected by the floods had to wait an entire month for any motion on bills designed to provide flood relief. Given the context of all that’s happened, I think it’s safe to surmise that Texas Republicans care more about manipulating elections at the state and county level than actually taking care of their constituents.
SEE ALSO:
Texas Rep. Nicole Collier Being Held Hostage At State House
Texas Democrats Will Return To State After Special Session Ends
Eric Holder Strategizes Against Gerrymandering With House Democrats
Gov. Greg Abbott Orders Arrest Of Texas Democrats
Calif. Gov. Gavin Newsom Counters Texas Redistricting Effort
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Sues To Remove Democratic Rep In Redistricting Fight
Texas Creates 5 New House Seats In Areas Trump Won In 2024
Texas Dems Fight Redistricting Effort Through Filibusters
Texas State Dems Break Quorum To Prevent Redistricting Vote
US Senator John Cornyn, FBI Team Up To Hunt Texas Democrats
Critics Call Texas Governor’s New Congressional Map Gerrymandering
Video: Black Congressional Candidate Arrested For Protesting Against Racist Gerrymandering In Texas
Texas Appeals Court To Rule On Racist Redistricted Map
Texas’ Tarrant County Cuts 100 Polling Stations And Limits Early Voting was originally published on newsone.com
