A Texas court says the virus is not enough for mail voting

Texas officials, who are fighting to prevent widespread mail-in voting during the epidemic, sought victory after the state’s Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that the coronavirus immunity does not qualify anyone to vote by mail.

The decision was unanimous by the Texas Supreme Court, which is stocked with nine Republican judges, including one who revealed last week that he tested positive for Kovit-19. Texas generally restricts postal voting to those who are over 65 or disabled.

The Texas Democrat blasted the decision and moved its hopes for a similar challenge in federal court. But not everyone sees the decision as a total loss: Douglas Ray, a high-profile attorney in Houston, said Harris County attorney Douglas Ray believes the ruling will allow every voter to be eligible, and the writers cannot be given a second ability. Predict rationality.

In Texas, voters do not have to explain their disability when requesting a mail-in ballot.

Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who lost his lower court ruling earlier this month, would have extended mail-in votes to all of the state’s 16 million registered voters, arguing that the fear of getting the virus would not qualify for a disability. He praised the court for holding the position for only a few weeks until the state sets up for the primary election in July.

Paxton has taken a tough step in opposing the efforts of Democrats and voting rights groups to try to expand mail voting in Texas. His fight comes as President Donald Trump fights off the mail-in ballot and blames it without evidence that it leads to “total electoral fraud.”

“In-person voting is a surefire way to uphold the integrity of our elections, prevent voter fraud and guarantee that every voter is who they say they are,” Paxton said.

Trump tweeted the court ruling Wednesday night: “Texas Supreme Court: Covitt-19’s immunity is not enough to vote by mail … Biggest hit in dangerous mail’s voting fraud in Texas!”

The fight in Texas is just one of several court battles across the country, mainly by Democrats, in an effort to expand access to postal ballots in the midst of epidemics. In Wisconsin, while other states delayed voting, election officials raised widespread criticism for holding its April 7 presidential election, arguing that a new lawsuit filed this month was not enough to ensure that the upcoming elections could be conducted safely and fairly. .

The court rejected Paxton’s request to prevent local election officials from accepting postal votes on claims of inability to carry out the virus. Judge Nathan Hecht wrote that the court “is confident that election officials will comply.”

But in Houston, he said the verdict was clear that if voters did not qualify and they were “healthy, you could get Kovid if you were afraid.”

“As we all know, nobody is healthy,” Ray said. “All of us have something we can see, and the voter has to decide whether he qualifies or not. The clerk basically has no authority or ability to question him.”