Although an investigation by the Texas Rangers found no \u201cwidespread fraud,\u201d an audit by the Texas Secretary of State\u2019s office uncovered paper ballot shortages, long wait times and malfunctioning machines in 2022. A state law passed the following year dismantled<\/a> Harris County\u2019s elections administrator\u2019s office and shifted supervision of elections to the county clerk\u2019s office and voter registration to the tax assessor-collector.\u00a0<\/p>\n Critics said at the time that Senate Bill 1750, authored by Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, was an attempt by Republicans to exert more control over elections in a blue county in a traditionally red state. State inspectors were assigned to monitor the handling and counting of ballots in Harris County in 2024.\u00a0<\/p>\n Despite the investigation turning up no evidence that any county employees tampered with the election, Hudspeth\u2019s team continues to combat negative publicity. Gov. Greg Abbott took a shot at Harris County elections when he neglected to immediately call a special election after the death of former Houston Mayor and U.S. Congressman Sylvester Turner in March.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cNo county in Texas does a worse job of conducting elections than Harris County. They repeatedly fail to conduct elections consistent with state law,\u201d Abbott said<\/a> in April, when he announced that Turner\u2019s unexpired term would be decided in November. Several candidates in the Congressional District 18 race disputed the claim, praised Hudspeth and said Abbott delayed the election to minimize Democratic representation in Congress.\u00a0<\/p>\n Hudspeth said Monday the November election offers Harris County voters an opportunity to influence local and statewide policy. Seventy early voting locations<\/a> will remain open through October 31 and roughly 600 will be available countywide on Election Day.\u00a0<\/p>\n Hudspeth told the Houston Press last week that \u201ctons of things have been done since 2022\u201d to improve voting process.\u00a0<\/p>\n When elections were returned to the county clerk\u2019s office in 2023, Hudspeth assessed the equipment and determined what needed to be upgraded.<\/p>\n \u201cWe really got down in the trenches of addressing the major concerns that took place in 2022,\u201d she said. \u201cThat included software upgrades to reduce the amount of paper [that] voters have to use when it\u2019s time to scan their ballots. We went from two to three pages to just one page. We made sure we overallocated paper documents for every election cycle since then, so we\u2019ve made sure we\u2019ve not repeated those things.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The clerk then went to the Harris County Commissioners Court and asked for more equipment.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you run as many elections as we do in Harris County \u2014 back-to-backs, runoffs, specials, primaries \u2014 you can\u2019t flip all that equipment around in one swoop to go to the next election,\u201d Hudspeth said. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to have enough equipment for one and audit for the next and use additional equipment.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Elections headquarters has been in a new centralized facility on Morales Road near Bush Intercontinental Airport for about a year. At Monday\u2019s press conference, a call center was already staffed at the headquarters building, taking calls from prospective voters. Hudspeth said her team continues to work with both major political parties and the Secretary of State\u2019s Office when legislative changes occur, and the real heroes are the poll workers.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cElections simply don\u2019t work without election workers,\u201d she said. \u201cWe train these individuals and we provide them with all\u00a0 the resources to be prepared and ready. For a November election, it can take anywhere from 12,000 to 15,000 election workers. It is a huge machine. They are the most vital part of this operation.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you see an election worker, tell them thank you,\u201d she added.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n In addition to providing extensive training, Hudspeth said there are now more technicians at polling places to assess potential problems and deliver materials if needed.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cOh, like, if they run out of paper?\u201d a reporter asked.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re not going to run out of paper,\u201d a staffer from Hudspeth\u2019s office responded.\u00a0<\/p>\n The clerk pointed out that there\u2019s no such thing as a flawless election but said she does not \u201canticipate any issues.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOne thing is for sure: every election cycle we learn something,\u201d she said. \u201cIn terms of the voting machines, all those machines are audited and worked on. We have measures in place and we have technical support teams in clusters around the county. If something needs to be addressed or taken care of, we\u2019re able to do it in real time.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201c[There have been] no hiccups, no concerns, and look, if something comes up, we have technical individuals in the field,\u201d she added. \u201cWe have dispatch units all over the place. Our teams are working really hard day and night.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Hudspeth encouraged Harris County residents to read published voter guides and study the sample ballots at harrisvotes.com<\/a> before they go to the polls. The clerk also noted that while a mid-decade redistricting<\/a> effort was approved by the Texas Legislature this summer, the Congressional District 18 boundaries remain the same as they have been for several election cycles.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThose changes will not take place until 2026,\u201d she said. \u201cIf you live in and have registered in CD 18, the maps have not changed. If there is a runoff, the maps will also stay the same.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Those who are eligible to vote remotely have until Friday, October 24, to fill out the paperwork to receive a ballot in the mail, Hudspeth said. The next couple of weeks will be busy for the county clerk, but she said she has no doubt that she, with the help of \u201ca huge village of people,\u201d can pull it off.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cPart of running elections is that it\u2019s just kind of in your blood,\u201d Hudspeth said. \u201cNo matter how tired you are, it\u2019s just like this timer goes off and it\u2019s like, OK, it\u2019s go time.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Tara-Nguyen.jpg\")
Tara Nguyern, an outreach specialist in the Harris County Elections Department, displays a map of 70 early voting locations. Credit: April Towery<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Leslie-Moore.jpg\")
Poll worker Leslie Moore sets up a voting booth at the Richard and Meg Weekley Community Center. Credit: April Towery<\/p>\n