Texas DPS System Error Delays 178,000 Voter Registrations

The Texas Department of Public Safety failed to transmit at least 178,000 voter registration applications and updates to county offices due to a software error caused by a third-party vendor. The glitch began in October 2025 following a software update to the online driver's license portal, which resulted in incomplete records that the Texas Secretary of State's office could not process. The error was resolved on September 13, 2026, and corrected files were delivered to the Secretary of State on September 18.

County election offices are now scrambling to process the deluge of records before the October 5 registration deadline and the start of early voting on October 19. The backlog is particularly severe in populous areas, with Bexar County receiving over 45,000 transactions, Travis County receiving 32,000, and El Paso County receiving 12,000. Local officials warn the failure may have disenfranchised voters during the March primary.

State Senator Paul Bettencourt and Texas Democrats have criticized the state's failure to detect the error sooner, with Bettencourt arguing the Secretary of State's office should have noticed the missing files. In response, the Secretary of State's office stated that voters who registered before the deadline but are missing from the rolls can cast provisional ballots to ensure their votes are counted. The administrative crisis coincides with a high-profile U.S. Senate race between James Talarico and Ken Paxton.