Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 4, 2021

CONTACT: press@secure-democracy.org

SB 47 Is A Dangerous Distraction

AUSTIN, TX - In reaction to the Texas Senate State Affairs Committee passing S.B. 47 out of committee today, Secure Democracy issued the following statement:

“The 2020 election was secure and fair, and there is no reason to litigate the results as S.B. 47 attempts to,” said Sarah Walker, executive director of Secure Democracy. “This dangerous legislation will weaken confidence in and wreak havoc on Texas’s voting systems by allowing candidates and partisan officials to initiate unneeded, costly politically-motivated election reviews. Texas already has rigorous post-election audit procedures in place, which is, in part, why Governor Abbott has correctly resisted political pressure to add this issue to the agenda of the special session. Thanks to the tireless work of Texas’s local election officials, voters can have confidence in the 2020 election results. The 2020 election is over, and as the local officials are focused on implementing new election laws and preparing for 2022, it’s time for the legislature to address other pressing issues impacting Texans across the state.”

ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND ON S.B. 47

S.B. 47 is nearly identical to a bill that passed the State Senate in the last special session, S.B. 97. Some of the most worrisome provisions in the bill includes:

  • Allows losing candidates and party officials to challenge election results: S.B. 47 creates procedures that would allow losing candidates and county party chairs to request county clerks to review actions that “appear to violate the Election Code” and other perceived irregularities. As written, the bill seems to allow a losing candidate or party chair to initiate this review process at their whim. Likewise, the sufficiency of the clerk’s review is subject solely to the whim of the requesting party. The requesting party may escalate any issue they wish to the Secretary of State for an audit. The bill, as written, contains no threshold requirement or minimum level of evidence for a requesting party to initiate review. 

  • Creates more financial burdens for taxpayers and counties: S.B. 47 does not impose the costs on the requesting party, leaving taxpayers and counties to pick up the costs of the review. The bill does not contain any punishment for a requesting party making a frivolous request. 

  • Opens the floodgates for frivolous allegations: The lack of disincentive for frivolous claims would likely lead to a flood of review requests from losing candidates or parties that would severely diminish public confidence in Texas elections. SB 47 would allow losing candidates in general elections, party primaries, and local elections to inflict severe damage to the orderly conduct of elections, and government generally.  With no seeming downside or repercussion for requesting review, what losing candidate or party wouldn’t request a review of an election they lost? Every election result would face the looming threat of second-guessing and investigation months after completion and certification.

  • Relitigates the certified 2020 election results: S.B. 47 would allow county party chairs to request a review of the already certified results of the November 2020 general election. The portion of the bill concerning review of 2020 results does require the requesting party to state any allegation, perceived irregularity, or reason for the request. A party can request review of up to five races, including those won by current incumbents who were declared winners almost a year ago and have been serving their constituents ever since. As above, the bill does not impose costs on the requesting party or any punishment for frivolous requests. The likely result of these provisions will be a costly and unnecessary review of the election results in numerous counties for an election that the Secretary of State’s office has stated was “safe, secure, and successful.” 

TEXAS DOESN’T NEED S.B. 47

  • Texas already has a good process to verify election results. In the 2021 regular session, Secure Democracy strongly supported S.B. 598, which requires counties to participate in risk-limiting audits and creates auditable paper trails for Texas elections. The bill was passed by the legislature and signed into law by Gov. Abbott. Secure Democracy strongly believes that this is the right solution to verify election results, as it has been tried and tested in other states.

  • S.B. 47 would be worse than the Maricopa County election review. Unlike the election review in Maricopa County, AZ, which focused on just two races in one county, S.B. 47 would allow losing candidates to initiate politically-motivated reviews of election results in any number of counties and cost Texas taxpayers unknown sums of money.

  • S.B. 47 is the latest attempt to undermine local election officials. Election administrators and workers across the country, including in Texas, have been subject to increased pressure and threats since the 2020 elections. S.B. 47 would add to this trend as it seeks to undermine Texas election officials’ ability to carry out their duties and conduct fair elections.

  • Texas voters have been clear that they reject attempts to inject partisan influence in elections. According to a July 2021 statewide poll conducted by Ragnar Research for Secure Democracy, 90% of Texans believe state lawmakers should take steps to protect their elections from partisan interference. S.B. 47 would instead inject more partisanship and chaos in Texas elections.

  • Many Republicans and local election officials have rejected politically motivated election reviews across the country. From Florida to Texas to Arizona, Republicans and local election officials are rejecting calls for and warning against starting more wasteful, politically-motivated Arizona-style election reviews. Secure Democracy has compiled a list of statements on this topic here.


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Secure Democracy is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that works to build confidence in our elections and improve voter access across the United States. We educate policymakers and the public about what it takes to safeguard our voting systems. We use sophisticated survey and messaging research to inform our strategy and we collaborate with state leaders, election administrators, policy  experts, and allies to ensure that all eligible citizens have the freedom to vote how they choose.