Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 6, 2021
CONTACT: press@secure-democracy.org
New Texas Poll Finds Strong, Bipartisan Support for Expanded Voter Access, Rejection of Partisan Influence in Elections
Vast majority of Texas voters support extending early voting, increasing polling locations — and reject criminalizing election professionals
Austin, Texas— Ninety percent of Texans believe state lawmakers should take steps to protect their elections from partisan interference, and 91% of Texans say the legislature should not be allowed to reject or overturn election results without clear proof of fraud, according to a new statewide poll released today by Secure Democracy.
The poll, conducted by Republican pollster Chris Perkins of Ragnar Research Partners, also found strong bipartisan support for policies that increase accessibility and accountability within the Texas election system, including extending early voting, providing additional polling locations on Election Day, and allowing voters to correct small errors on their mail ballots.
Among the key findings, there is broad, bipartisan support across Texas for:
Uniform ballot cure process: 69% of voters want to create a consistent process to allow voters to correct mail-in ballots before they are tossed out, including 60% of Republican voters.
Extending early voting opportunities: 74% of voters want to expand the accessibility of early voting by one week, and 80% of voters want to add a second weekend of early voting.
Increasing number of polling locations on Election Day: 87% of all voters support; 69% of Republican voters support.
Rejecting partisan influence and voter intimidation in our elections: 93% of voters believe that poll watchers should have proper training; 86% of voters do not want poll watchers to film or photograph their votes.
Texas voters also overwhelmingly oppose threatening election officials with criminal prosecution when it minimizes voter assistance:
Jail time for election officials: 86% of voters said election workers shouldn’t worry about risking jail time for doing their jobs.
Felony for providing assistance: 86% of voters oppose felony charges for providing assistance to voters with disabilities or voters with other unique needs at polling locations.
"There is strong support for increasing the number of voting locations, providing the necessary assistance to voters who need it, and expanding early voting opportunities,” said Chris Perkins of Ragnar Research Partners. "Texans also support statewide voting standards and allowing visually impaired voters the ability to cast a secure, private ballot at their home — but they oppose threatening caregivers and election workers with prosecution.”
"Texans don’t want to see partisanship injected in their elections, but both the policies and the process too many state legislatures followed during regular session did exactly that,” said Sarah Walker, executive director of Secure Democracy. “This special session, Texas lawmakers have a chance to reset and reconsider election reforms with an eye toward actually improving integrity and transparency in our elections without being partisan or restrictive. Texas lawmakers should listen to their voters — Republicans, Democrats and Independents — who simply want to continue to see elections run in a way that all Texans can be proud of.”
Commissioned by Secure Democracy, the Ragnar Research Partners poll of 1,000 likely voters across Texas was conducted June 27 through June 30, 2021 via live callers to landlines and cellphones and has a margin of error of +3%.
The full memo from Ragnar Research Partners can be found here.
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About Secure Democracy
Secure Democracy is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that works to improve election integrity across the United States. We educate policymakers and the public about what it takes to safeguard our voting systems. We collaborate with state leaders, election administrators, election integrity experts, and allies to ensure that all eligible citizens have the freedom to vote how they choose.