New voter registrations plummeted during the pandemic in Texas, where you can't register online

[TexasTowelie]

by Alex Samuels, Texas Tribune


If this were like any other election year, volunteers for MOVE Texas, which works to engage young voters, would’ve been at Mooov-In Day at the University of Texas at Austin, equipped with sign-up sheets, clipboards and fold-out tables, looking to register thousands of young people moving away from home for the first time.

But 2020 is not a normal year.

“All the traditional places are off limits,” said Charlie Bonner, the communications director for the organization. “We’re not deploying any of our organizers to campuses because it’s not responsible.”

The coronavirus has brought widespread concern about how people can vote safely in Texas this November, especially as the state’s elected leaders have resisted the idea of broadening who is eligible to vote by mail. But the state is already seeing one major effect of the pandemic on voting: It’s much harder to register voters.

Forty-one states have passed legislation to allow residents to register to vote online. Texas is not one of them, and the state’s Republican leadership has long fought efforts to allow for an online voter registration process. Voting advocates and local election officials have made do with mail initiatives, avoiding what were once standard in-person initiatives at community events, high school graduations and public squares.

Read more: https://www.texastribune.org/2020/09/17/texas-voter-registration/