Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott has denounced the history of election issues in the state’s most populous counties for his delay in seeking special elections to fill the seat of Sylvestar Turner Democrat, who passed away a month ago.
But Tenesia Hadspeth, chief election officer for Harris County, where Turner’s parliamentary district is located, pushed back Abbott’s criticism, saying the county was “fully prepared” to hold an alternative election for lawmakers.
Democrats accused Abbott of delaying the election to help Republicans maintain a thin razor rim in their American homes. Harris County Attorney Christian Menefy, along with one of the candidates competing for the open seat and Democrat minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, threatened to sue Abbott over the delay.
Former Houston mayor Turner passed away on March 5th, just weeks after his first term in Congress. His district includes parts of Houston and Harris counties, with around 800,000 residents.
Abbott has the sole authority to seek special elections. Abbott’s office had previously only said that an announcement about the special election would be made at a later date.
However, in an interview with Kxan in Austin on Thursday, Abbott cited election issues in Harris County due to the delay. The election has been scrutinized in Harris County for several years. Harris County has nearly five million residents, most of whom are Latin or Black. The issues include long lines, voting workers, lack of votes, and votes that were not counted on Election Day.
In 2023, Abbott signed a bill that removed Harris County election administrators and held other local officials responsible, including Hudspeth.
“Harris County fails repeatedly because it involves operating elections, and if you call it very quickly, it could have failed that election, just as Harris County failed in the other elections.
Abbott gave no date for the special election, saying, “We’ll announce it soon.”
In a statement Friday, Hudspeth said “my office has successfully conducted eight elections” since the state returned its election management duties to her office.
In X’s post, Menefy is called Abbott’s comment “nonsense.”
“Governor, call the election. You have a month. There’s no excuse anymore,” Menefy said.
