Commissioners approve seeking reimbursement for approximately $8,000 in expenses, excluding overtime, as early voting approaches.
More than 8,000 Lubbock County voters were affected by a statewide voter registration software failure, and approximately 1,000 records remain unprocessed just one week before early voting, County Elections Administrator Troy Havard told commissioners Monday.
The Lubbock County Commissioners Court unanimously approved seeking reimbursement from the Texas Secretary of State for approximately $8,000 in additional expenses, excluding overtime. The state set October 19, the first day of early voting, as the reimbursement deadline, according to Havard.
Havard’s figures indicate the county has processed roughly 88% of its affected records. The remaining backlog highlights concern about the reliability of Texas’ voter registration system and whether the failure prevented eligible voters from casting counted ballots.
At least 591,000 voter registration records affected statewide
A September 29 survey by The Dallas Morning News found at least 591,000 affected voter registration records across 105 Texas counties representing more than 75% of the state’s population.
The total includes new registrations, updates and possible duplicates, not necessarily individual voters.
The Texas Department of Public Safety traced the failure to an October 2025 software update by third-party vendor Deloitte that omitted three data fields from files sent to the Secretary of State’s Office.
DPS found the problem in August and corrected it September 13. Counties then received months of delayed records ahead of the November 3 election.
Lubbock County’s approximately 8,000 affected records equal about 1.35% of the statewide minimum number of effected records, reported by The Dallas Morning News.
Warnings came months before public disclosure
An October 1 investigation by The Texas Tribune and Votebeat found that state officials received warnings months before publicly disclosing the backlog.
In March, state Sen. Donna Campbell’s office contacted DPS about a constituent’s missing registration update. DPS acknowledged a programming error involving 992 online transactions between December 6, 2025, and February 26, 2026, and said it had resolved the problem. More complaints followed.
Published reports also documented voters who completed DPS registration transactions but met problems at the polls, including one whose provisional ballot was rejected during the March primary.
Investigators have not determined how many votes went uncounted because of the failures.
Counties absorb additional work and expenses
The backlog forced counties to review older registrations, check duplicates, and process updates before early voting.
In September, Dallas County reported more than 68,000 affected records, Collin County approximately 40,000 and Travis County approximately 32,000.
Lubbock County initially identified about 7,400 records. Havard updated that figure to just over 8,000 affected voters during Monday’s meeting.
The Secretary of State’s Office announced reimbursement help September 25. Lubbock County’s estimated $8,000 expense excludes overtime, and officials have not shown how much the state will reimburse.
Investigation and accountability questions remain
The failure drew scrutiny from both political parties.
State Rep. Matt Shaheen, Republican chair of the Texas House Elections Committee, said he was investigating the failure and wanted accountability. Democratic lawmakers also sought investigations and more county assistance.
Gov. Greg Abbott said DPS informed him that it resolved the technical problem.
Questions remain about the state’s response to earlier warnings, the impact on voters and potential accountability. No publicly established finding indicates anyone intentionally caused the failure.
Havard urges voters to check registration status
During Friday’s appearance on The Wake Up Call on 92.3 The Hub, Havard urged Lubbock County residents to verify their voter registration status at VoteTexas.gov, the Texas Secretary of State’s official election website.
He advised anyone unable to locate their registration information to contact the Lubbock County Elections Office directly.
Eligible voters whose timely registration transactions do not appear on voter rolls may qualify to cast provisional ballots, subject to verification under Texas election law.
With early voting beginning October 19, Lubbock County must still process approximately 1,000 records, Havard told commissioners.
A statewide investigation has yet to find why earlier warnings did not prevent the backlog or how many Texans experienced voting problems because of the failure.
