Why don't the state's early vote numbers for Bexar and Fort Bend match the counties' own counts? Misleading.
The rumor is Misleading
“The early vote numbers in Bexar and Fort Bend counties don't add up.”
The fact
The numbers that don't match are on the state's turnout dashboard, not in the ballot count.
On Oct. 23 the Houston Chronicle found the state site showing 8 mail voters in Bexar County, where the county had counted nearly 18,000. In Fort Bend, the state showed about 41,000 in-person voters to the county's 75,000-plus. The cause is the state's rebuilt voter system, TEAM. The Secretary of State's elections director told counties its mail ballot function wasn't ready and had them enter mail voters by hand, one at a time. The state calls early vote totals unofficial and says county uploads can lag. No election office or credible outlet has reported a miscount of actual votes.
What to do
For early vote turnout, go to your county, not the state dashboard: elections.bexar.gov for Bexar, fortbendcountytx.gov for Fort Bend. Official results come from each county's canvass after Election Day.
How this story developed
- The Texas Secretary of State says county early vote totals are unofficial, can take time to appear and may not yet include every ballot.
- The Houston Chronicle reports the state early voting site lags Bexar and Fort Bend county counts because the state's TEAM system cannot take mail ballot data in bulk.