The U.S. Department of Justice sent election monitors and observers to Harris County and six other Texas counties on Tuesday, Nov. 3.
The deployment is part of what the department called its largest monitoring effort in history. Approximately 1,000 monitors and observers fanned out across all 50 states for the first time, according to a DOJ statement released Tuesday. The effort is coordinated by the department's Civil Rights Division.
Harris County is on the DOJ's list. Montgomery County is not.
The seven Texas counties receiving monitors are Bexar, Dallas, Harris, Waller, Blanco, Bowie and Nueces.
What the monitors are doing
The monitors are checking whether local jurisdictions comply with federal voting rights laws, including the Voting Rights Act, the Help America Vote Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), according to the DOJ statement. Personnel come from the Civil Rights Division, other DOJ components, U.S. Attorney's Offices and the Office of Personnel Management.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Civil Rights Division said in the statement that election integrity has been one of the top priorities for the administration and the division. She said the department is pursuing transparency for elections in an assertive and nondiscriminatory manner.
The DOJ has sent election monitors since the Voting Rights Act passed in 1965. Under President Biden in 2022, the department monitored 64 jurisdictions in 24 states, Houston Public Media reported. The 2026 effort covers all 50 states.
Voting rights groups raise concerns
Some voting rights groups, including the NAACP, say they believe the deployment could suppress turnout and disenfranchise voters, particularly from minority groups, USA Today reported.
USA Today reported that in states with competitive Senate races, monitors were assigned to cities and counties with disproportionately high levels of Black and Hispanic residents, according to U.S. Census data. In Texas, the monitored counties include Nueces, which is 64% Hispanic, Bexar at 60% Hispanic and Harris at 46% Hispanic, according to the outlet's analysis.
Some officials have also raised concerns. In Wyoming, the state's Republican governor expressed concern about what he called "aggressive" and "irregular" behavior by DOJ monitors during the state's August primary, Houston Public Media reported.
The DOJ disputed that characterization.
Texas blocked monitors in 2024
The monitoring effort carries particular history in Texas. In 2024, Attorney General Ken Paxton sued the Biden-era DOJ to block monitors from entering Texas polling and counting locations, according to a statement from the Texas Attorney General's office on Nov. 5, 2024. The DOJ agreed to keep monitors outside polling places and abide by Texas election law.
Whether any similar legal challenge has been filed for the 2026 deployment is not clear from available records.
How to report problems
The DOJ is asking anyone with questions or complaints about federal voting rights to call 1-800-253-3931 or email [email protected]. ADA-related complaints can go to 1-800-514-0301.
Complaints about disruptions or threats at a polling place should be reported to local election officials and local police first, the department said.
