Attorney General Ken Paxton’s crusade against alleged voter fraud has led to the criminal prosecution of six Democratic officials, all Latino, in Frio County, Texas. Civil rights groups say the charges are politically motivated and aim to suppress Latino civic participation.
Among those indicted earlier this month are the Frio County judge, two local city council members, a school board trustee and a former elections administrator.
The charges stem from their work assisting elderly voters with mail-in ballots during the 2022 election. Prosecutors claim that some participants were reimbursed via Cash App, and that the officials violated a sweeping 2021 law that criminalized many traditional forms of voter assistance.
Voting rights advocates say this isn’t about curbing fraud. It’s about creating fear.
“There is a history in Texas, by Attorney General Paxton, of attempting to deter participation by eligible voters through prosecutions,” Thomas A. Saenz, president and general counsel of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) told Democracy Docket. “There’s no question it targets Latino voters as a threat by Paxton and others in the power structure of Texas.”
Paxton pushed for the 2021 law under which the officials are being charged. Known as Senate Bill 1 (SB 1), it makes voter assistance, or “vote harvesting,” punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. (A separate provision in the law that tightens the rules for mail voting has led to a spike in mail-in ballot rejections across Latino counties in Texas.)
In South Texas, community-based voter assistance, especially among elderly and Spanish-speaking residents, has long been a vital part of civic engagement. Local volunteers known as politiqueras have traditionally helped voters navigate mail-in ballots, provide transportation and translate election materials. Under SB 1, volunteers who drive three or more voters to the polls must submit a signed form with their personal information to the state, adding another layer of surveillance. Moreover, anyone assisting voters with translation help must complete paperwork detailing their relationship to the voter and take an oath under penalty of perjury.
Critics say these provisions and prosecutions are criminalizing decades-old cultural practices that helped Latino communities participate in democracy.
“I’ve helped my neighbors vote since I was in my twenties, translating, answering questions,” Irma Delgado, 45, a longtime voting volunteer from San Antonio, told Democracy Docket. “Now one mistake and they’ll say I broke the law.”
Paxton’s office has spent years aggressively pursuing election fraud claims. In 2019, he attempted to purge 95,000 voters from the rolls, mostly Latino naturalized U.S. citizens. And since taking office, he has launched dozens of investigations and raids against voters, volunteers and poll workers for alleged voter fraud. Most of these have been in Latino-majority counties and out of 390 investigations by Paxton, only five resulted in convictions, per a ProPublica report.
Paxton’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
Latinos make up about 40% of the population in Texas. In recent years, their turnout and share of the electorate has surged. Between 2016 and 2020, Latino voter turnout in the state rose from 40.5% to 53.1%.
Paxton, and some other Republican officials, have responded not with outreach and campaigning, but with suppression tactics.
In 2022, after SB 1 took effect and limited voter assistance, mail-in ballot rejection rates in Latino-majority counties surged. In Bexar County, over 21% of mail ballots were rejected in the 2022 primary. In Hidalgo County, it was nearly 19%.
More than 27,000 ballots were rejected across Texas as a result of SB 1. Before the law, rejection rates were typically below 1% statewide, according to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.
Latino voters were 56% more likely than white voters to have their mail ballots tossed under the new rules.
“This is voter suppression 101,” Gabriel Rosales, the Texas State Director of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) said in a statement following the indictments. “There’s no vote harvesting going on. There’s nobody creating these ballots. That’s a lie.”
The high-profile raids and indictments have deepened anxieties among Latino communities already navigating complex voting laws, and may be discouraging critical forms of civic engagement ahead of future elections.
Whatever happens in the prosecutions of the Frio County officials, advocates warn the message has resonated. Families may second-guess whether to help elderly relatives with mail ballots. Longtime volunteers may reconsider their future work as it could be twisted into a felony.
But advocates are reassuring Latino voters and urging them to assert their right to vote in the face of these intimidation tactics.
“No one should hesitate to vote if they are eligible or to assist someone who needs help voting, particularly if that person has language or disability issues,” Saenz added. “Federal law guarantees the right to receive assistance from someone of your choosing.”