While it's unlikely that Tuesday's election will turn on the outcome of the vote in Texas, a Dem win -- however narrow -- would signal an historic political shift in a state that has been slowly been trending from red to purple over the past generation. That shift is what has Texas Republicans desperate to suppress the Dem vote wherever possible. Earlier this fall, Texas' corrupt Trumpist Gov. Greg Abbott, backed by his Republican-dominated state Supreme Court, limited ballot drop-off boxes in the state to one per county, meaning that a Republican- populated county like Loving County, population 84, got one drop-box, whereas the heavily Dem populated county Harris County (Houston), population 4,713,000, also got just one.
In response to this clear attempt at suppressing Dem votes, Harris County set up drive thru voting stations, which were utilized by roughly 127,000 voters exercising their right to vote. It was only a matter of time before the Republicans, at the last minute, challenged this mode of voting in the Dem stronghold:
"For 18 days of early voting, Harris County residents waited in line, had their identities verified by poll workers, and cast their votes in a presidential election that has seen record-breaking early turnout.
But for the nearly 127,000 people who did so at drive-thru polling places instead of in traditional indoor sites, many are now watching with fear as a wealthy conservative activist, a Republican state representative and two GOP candidates aim to throw out their ballots at the last minute. In the state’s most populous — and largely Democratic — county, drive-thru voters are left anxiously awaiting court decisions before Election Day on Tuesday that could force them to go back to the polls. Likely many more are unaware of their votes' potential demise.
The Republican legal effort could jeopardize 10% of the in-person early votes that were cast at 10 drive-thru polling places throughout the county — a vote count higher than the entire early vote total in Nueces County, home of Corpus Christi and the state's 16th most populous county."
This isn't a "Republican legal effort" so much as a Republican political crime of ballot theft and disenfranchising Texans at the last minute before election day, attempting to throw those 127,000 votes away leaving those voters with limited options and a murky status. This type of despicable suppression is in the Republican DNA, because they can't win with an honest debate on their policies, which, if truthfully presented, are opposed by the majority.
UPDATE: The Texas Supreme Court today rejected the effort by Rethugs to throw out 127,000 ballots cast in Houston's drive-thru ballot sites. Apparently it was a bridge too far even for the Rethug-dominated state court. However, the case will be heard by Federal District Court in Houston tomorrow.
