Texas lawmakers demand fixes to voter registration system before midterm elections

Texas lawmakers are increasing pressure on state election officials to resolve ongoing problems with the state’s voter registration and election management system before voters head to the polls in November.

During a recent Senate State Affairs Committee hearing, legislators questioned officials from the Texas Secretary of State’s Office about persistent technical issues affecting the Texas Election Administration Management system, commonly known as TEAM. The concerns center on whether the system can reliably support voter registration maintenance and election administration ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

State Sen. Paul Bettencourt, a Republican representing Harris County, said election officials from multiple counties have reported significant difficulties using the platform. According to Bettencourt, the complaints have come from both large and small jurisdictions, raising concerns about the system’s performance across the state.

In response, officials from the Secretary of State’s Office emphasized that fixing TEAM has become one of the agency’s highest priorities. Elections Division Director Christina Adkins told lawmakers that the office is devoting extensive resources to addressing the problems and working closely with the system’s vendor to implement solutions.

TEAM underwent a major redesign and relaunch last summer as part of a statewide modernization effort. Since then, county election administrators have reported a range of technical challenges. While some issues have been corrected, new problems continue to emerge, according to election officials.

Among the most frequently cited concerns are failures involving voter registration status searches, precinct assignment functions, and report generation. Counties have reported difficulties producing accurate lists of registered voters and mail-ballot applicants. In some cases, local election offices have resorted to creating and maintaining their own spreadsheets to compensate for the system’s shortcomings.

County officials say these workarounds require additional staff time and resources, placing further strain on election offices that are already operating under tight budgets and staffing limitations.

The TEAM platform was developed by Civix, a Louisiana-based technology company. Most of Texas’ 254 counties depend on the system for election planning and voter registration management. Even counties that use alternative state-approved software must synchronize their voter data with TEAM each day. State law also requires election officials to use TEAM when verifying voter identity and eligibility.

Concerns about the system are not new. Organizations representing election administrators across Texas have repeatedly urged state officials to pause further implementation of the updated system until major issues are resolved. Election groups first outlined their concerns in a letter sent to Secretary of State Jane Nelson in October and followed up with additional correspondence earlier this year.

The timing of the concerns is notable as the state prepares for a leadership transition. Nelson recently announced that she will step down from her position on July 17, and Gov. Greg Abbott has not yet named a successor.

Lawmakers also examined the role of Civix during the hearing. Public records show that the state’s contract with the company is valued at approximately $17 million. Funding for the project came from a combination of state resources and federal funds provided through the Help America Vote Act, a program designed to improve election administration nationwide.

Bettencourt questioned whether the vendor was moving quickly enough to deliver necessary fixes. State officials, however, expressed confidence in Civix’s ability to address the problems. Adkins noted that the company manages election and voter registration systems in other states, including Louisiana and Iowa, although Texas represents its largest election management customer.

The Secretary of State’s Office has characterized the TEAM rollout as a major technology upgrade and has acknowledged that some disruptions were expected. Officials have also pointed to several unforeseen complications, including large volumes of data from counties that changed software providers and challenges created by midcycle redistricting. Those factors, the agency said, contributed to delays and operational difficulties, including problems with issuing voter registration certificates.

With the November midterms approaching, lawmakers and election administrators alike are focused on ensuring the system functions reliably. State officials maintain that correcting the remaining issues is a top priority, while counties continue to push for improvements that will allow them to administer elections efficiently and maintain accurate voter records.