The elections department is working to clear a backlog just weeks before the November election.
SAN ANTONIO — Thousands of Bexar County voting applications are still in limbo as the elections department works to fix the backlog weeks before the November election.
Last week, we reported that the county is having to work with a new voting system ran by the state, but it has experienced slow support on getting errors fixed.
Bexar County Commissioner Rebeca Clay-Flores is also applying pressure to the state to get voter registration applications approved before the registration deadline.
The commissioner wrote a letter on Friday asking what kind of contingency plan the state has to guarantee Bexar County voters are not disenfranchised because of the delays. Clay-Flores asked about assurance for every application submitted before the deadline being processed and reflected in the voter rolls.
She also asked the secretary of state’s office if they’re going to provide direct financial or technical support during this transition.
To catch up on the lack of support, Bexar County did hire nine temporary workers to put data into the new voting system once it’s up and running.
Even though the elections office is confident the backlog will be cleared before early voting begins, elections administrator Michele Carew suggested that commissioners can hire a private vendor costing $1 million as a safeguard.
Commissioner Clay-Flores did put a deadline for Friday to get an answer to her questions.
The deadline to register to vote is October 6.