68,000 Texans will no longer have to prove that they aren’t dead in order to vote in the next election. The state of Texas has settled a suit brought on behalf of 68,000 “potentially deceased” Texas voters who shared a birthdate and a partial Social Security match with a person appearing on a federal death register. These people will now be able to vote, unless Texas can prove they’re dead. Another 12,000 voters will still have to prove that they’re not dead before casting a ballot. More from Lowering the Bar:
Under the previous rules, voters were identified as “potentially deceased” if there was at least a “weak match” (such as a birth date plus a partial Social Security number) between their information and the federal death records the state was consulting. The weakly matched dead made up 68,000 of the 80,000 people who received a letter from voting officials telling them they would be removed from the rolls if they didn’t speak up. Under the settlement, the burden shifts to officials to prove those people are really dead; the remainder (“strong matches”), who are much more likely to be dead, will still have to prove otherwise if they can.
“Today’s order [approving the settlement] is another step toward improving the integrity of the election system,” said Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, who had unsuccessfully tried to defend the state’s original plan. I think it’s actually the same step, but 85% smaller.
Texas Settles With Previously Dead Voters