For The Record

More states are coming out with election bills in the wake of Georgia passing their Election Integrity Act of 2021. Texas, in particular, has bills in the House and Senate. The Senate has advanced SB 7. This bill requires that registered voters who have been excused from jury duty for ineligibility to vote (i.e. not being citizens) be removed from voter rolls. It requires the Secretary of State to monitor registrars for compliance with the law and imposes financial penalties where registrars fail to correct violations within a timely manner.

SB 7 provides for the electronic tracking of mail-in ballot applications and the ballot itself. It also requires that electronic images of both sides of all applications, envelopes, and ballots be maintained. Ballots also must be preserved after an election and chain of custody to be maintained in order to prevent vote tampering. Moreover, ballot storage locations must be guarded by a licensed peace officer and allow for the installation of video security cameras at these locations.

These provisions protect voter integrity by making it harder for criminals to cheat during election cycles. Not shockingly, this bill is widely unpopular with parties whose electability would appear to depend on voter fraud.

On the other side of the legislature, under consideration in the Texas State House is HB 6. This bill makes it a felony to pay for ballot harvesting and trafficking, protects voters who need assistance from being victimized by the people assisting them, prevents election judges from removing poll watchers from a polling place, and makes it illegal for election officers to refuse to accept duly appointed watchers. Further, this bill provides for the removal of dead voters from the voting rolls, which proved to be an issue in 2020. HB 6 also makes it illegal to solicit for mail-voting applications or to send applications and ballots to voters who have not requested them, just as in Georgia’s new law. Lastly, to make elections more transparent, HB 6 makes it illegal for election officials to alter or suspend election procedures on their own recognizance.

Then there's California. California is considering legislation (AB 37) that erases the current limitation of mail-in voting to those who cannot vote in person. It will instead require that election officials mail a ballot to every registered voter in the state, effectively eliminating the concept of an election day and in-person voting completely. The bill would permit votes to be received and counted up to seven days after an election. The bill permits ballots with no postmark or with no date on the postmark to have a date stamped on them upon receipt of the ballot by the elections official and permits votes to be delivered either by the Post Office or by "a bona fide private mail delivery company." This means that an unlimited number of ballots (with no postmarks) can be dumped on election officials up to seven days after an election, and those ballots must be counted.

It is a tale of two states: One state wants those who are able to vote in person to do so, and the other state thinks that a ballot mailed without a postmark is legitimate. It is clear which state wants to protect voter integrity. Each fraudulent ballot dilutes the ballot of a legitimate voter. Plain and simple.

Meanwhile, CEOs of more than 100 large corporations are gathering to discuss how to exert economic pressure against our democracy. These companies include Delta, American, and United Airlines, Starbucks, Target, LinkedIn, Levi Strauss, and BCG. This used to be anathema to the Left: The idea that powerful companies and wealthy individuals might use their money to change the law, in defiance of the will of voters. These CEOs are unanimous in the opinion that voting laws should be more relaxed and security provisions weakened—which would include getting rid of voter ID. To counter these initiatives, everyday Americans, like you, can take action by calling your legislature, getting involved in the passage of new election bills, and making sure your voices are heard.

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