In new petition, GOP candidates and state Rep. Toth ask Texas Supreme Court to REJECT Harris County votes cast in drive-thru lanes (100,000+ so far), calling it illegal curbside voting reserved for sick/disabled.
A new argument after earlier bid to end drive-thru voting failed.
Hotze is a GOP activist in Houston
Champion is a GOP candidate for Congress.
Hemphill is a GOP candidate for District Court.
Toth is GOP member of Texas House from The Woodlands.
This comes after the Texas Supreme Court rejected efforts to shut down drive-thru voting last week by the Republican Party of Texas and a separate petition by Hotze, the Harris County GOP and and Hemphill.
New challenge by GOP candidates, House member and activist asks the Texas Supreme Court to void thousands of Harris County drive-thru votes as illegally cast, the story at: statesman.com/news/20201028/…
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
US judge in San Antonio REQUIRES all voters, poll workers, and poll watchers in Texas to wear a mask at voting locations. Judge, a Trump appointee, VOIDS portion of Gov. Abbott’s mask mandate that exempted polling places.
More to come.
Judge says exempting those who are “voting, assisting a voter, serving as a poll watcher, or actively administering an election” from compliance with the statewide mask mandate violates the Voting Rights Act "because it creates a discriminatory burden on Black and Latino voters."
Judge initially dismissed the original lawsuit, which sought a long list of poll safety improvements.
5th Circuit Court upheld that ruling but returned case for 1 issue: whether the mask exemption violated the Voting Rights Act.
It does, Judge Jason Pulliam says.
BREAKING: Texas Supreme Court UPHOLDS Gov. Abbott's order limiting counties to 1 mail ballot drop-off site, DISSOLVES temporary restraining order that blocked Abbott's Oct. 1 order that closed extra sites.
BREAKING: 5th Circuit Court STAYS trial judge ruling that required improved pandemic response in the state's geriatric prison, including frequent cleaning of common areas, giving COVID-19 information and providing hand sanitizer, masks, tissues and other hard to get items.
Appeals court says 2 plaintiff-inmates failed to exhaust their administrative remedies.
In addition, "their constitutional claim fails on the merits. TDCJ’s response, albeit imperfect, did not amount to
deliberate indifference under the Eighth Amendment."
Ruling: "To be sure, the district court identified lapses in TDCJ’s response to COVID-19. As a matter of policy, TDCJ could have done more to protect vulnerable inmates in the Pack Unit. But federal judges are not policymakers."
JUST IN: Prosecutors in AG Paxton criminal case ask judge to approve their $300 rate, noting that is what Paxton agreed to pay "an untested and unqualified rookie" to investigate allegations of federal misconduct in the Nate Paul matter.
"If Paxton's choice to pay Cammack $300 an hour appears to be disingenuous, it is only because it is: in successfully derailing this prosecution by spearheading a concerted effort to defund it, Paxton has referred to the Pro Tern's $300 hourly rate as unreasonable, unwarranted."
"No one - save and except for (Paxton)- can plausibly say that their collective experience as trial and appellate lawyers totaling 8 decades does not entitle the Pro Tems to be paid the same rate as Cammack, whose own experience, training and expertise is virtually microscopic."
BREAKING: Federal judge GRANTS injunction barring enforcement of Gov. Abbott's order limiting counties to 1 mail-in ballot drop-off location.
Story to come.
Judge says Abbott’s order placed an unacceptable burden on the voting rights of elderly and disabled Texans, who are most likely to vote by mail and to hand deliver those ballots early to ensure that they are counted.
The developing story at: statesman.com/news/20201009/…
BREAKING: Gov. Abbott issues proclamation CLOSING (as of Oct. 2) satellite offices where voters can drop off completed mail-in ballots.
Counties can only have 1 dropoff point, he says.
Travis has 4, including 3 downtown.
Harris has 12.
Abbott says move, which also requires early voting clerks to let poll watchers observe ballot delivery, is an election security measure.
Clerks said the multiple dropoff spots were to help voters, particularly amid questions about Postal Service efficiency.
Read the proclamation, which amended Abbott's July 27 order that extended early voting and allowed early dropoff of mail ballots, here: gov.texas.gov/uploads/files/…