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HARRIS COUNTY, Texas - Senator Paul Bettencourt filed an administrative election complaint against Harris County with the Secretary of State’s office.
In it, he accused the county of having registered voters on the rolls using P.O. boxes, including several UPS store locations.
The senator says no one lives in a P.O. box, so they cannot legally register to vote from one.
A bill passed by the legislature in 2021, authored by the senator, required counties to strengthen the maintenance of their voter rolls, and this is a violation.
The other side:
The Secretary of State’s office initiated contact with Annette Ramirez - the Tax Assessor/Collector, as well as the voter registrar, to start the process of identifying the voters at those addresses.
Her office released the following statement: "The Harris County Tax Office is committed to maintaining an accurate voter roll and protecting the right to vote. The tax office disagrees with Senator Bettencourt’s press release and its characterization of the secretary of state’s letter and findings. As acknowledged by the Secretary of State on December 23, 2025 - once it was brought to our office’s attention -- the tax office took diligent and timely action to address the concerns raised in Senator Bettencourt’s complaint and followed the process clearly outlined by the Secretary of State and the Texas Election Code. We will continue to work with the Secretary of State and other stakeholders to ensure the accuracy of our voter rolls, compliance with all applicable laws, and the enfranchisement of all eligible voters."
In a letter to the Texas Secretary of State, the Harris County Tax Office said, "There is no basis to find that HCTO (Harris County Tax Office) has violated any provision of the Texas Election Code and the Secretary of State should not take any action against HCTO in connection with this complaint."
You can read the full letter below:
In a letter sent to the Harris County Tax-Assessor Collector, Christina Adkins, Director of Elections, stated they received the December 18 letter and "appreciates your diligent and timely efforts to respond to the items listed in the complaint and to ensure the accuracy of your voter registration records through proper list maintenance activities."
The Source: News release from Senator Bettencourt, a statement from the Harris County Tax Office, and a letter from Christina Adkins, Director of Elections with the State of Texas.