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Texas Election Observers: Rules and Constraints

This resource details state and federal laws that govern who can be a poll watcher, what they can do, and how election workers can regulate them.

Last Updated: September 26, 2024
Published: June 26, 2024
View the entire Election Observers Rules and Constraints series

Election observers, referred to as “poll watchers” in Texas, are individuals who monitor early and Election Day polling places, early voting ballot boards, central counting stations, and signature verification committees. While election observers play an important role in providing transparency, they can also be a potential source of disruption and intimidation. For this reason, all states have a series of rules and constraints regarding who can serve as election observers and what they can do. Texas’s rules on observers, which derive from the state’s election code and from guidance issued by the Secretary of State, are:

Appointment

Role of Poll Watchers

Prohibited Activities

Federal and state law strictly prohibit all people, including poll watchers, from engaging in voter intimidation. Any action that makes a voter feel intimidated, threatened, or coerced (including any effort to prevent a voter from registering to vote, voting, or voting for or against any candidate or ballot measure) could constitute voter intimidation, regardless of whether it breaks a specific rule.footnote23_cZpayQC5WK6ylmVtvi8C4p5IrzsZeEebO06Lq7y1LMI_iDFSt9ntfLlK2318 U.S.C. §§ 241, 594; 52 U.S.C. § 10101(b).More information on the federal and state laws that protect Texas voters from intimidation can be found here.

Removal

End Notes