In this Oct. 15, 2020, file photo, a voter makes their choice from a vehicle outside the American Airlines Center in Dallas.

Since a federal judge forced Texas nearly a year and a half ago to offer limited online voter registration, 1.5 million Texans have used the option, according to new state data.

The August 2020 ruling, which found Texas in violation of the National Voter Registration Act, required state officials to give residents the opportunity to register when they renew their driver’s license online. The system was in place a month later.

Advocates say the new data speaks to the success of online registration — and is evidence that Texas, one of just a few states that does not offer an online option for every registrant, should implement the program statewide. Republican leaders in state government have resisted such change, instead pursuing new voting restrictions in the name of election security.

“The very best thing you can do is have systems where the government is seamlessly integrating voter registration into other processes,” said Mimi Marziani, the president of the Texas Civil Rights Project, which represented the plaintiffs in the case that spurred the creation of the online system.

It’s unclear how many of the 1.5 million people are registering to vote for the first time, but it’s likely that the majority of them are updating addresses on existing registrations. Hearst Newspapers requested the information a week ago, but the secretary of state’s office declined to provide that breakdown by publication time. Roughly 1.9 million people use the Department of Public Safety website to renew their license each year, Marziani said.

About 40 percent of the online registration applications came from Texas’ five most populous counties. Roughly 200,000 people have used the option in Harris County, and 100,000 in Bexar, according to state data.

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Experts say the option has removed a barrier for those who likely aren’t thinking about updating their voter registration information after moving, when they are required by law to update their address. They contend it’s especially useful as Texas has cracks down on fraudulent ballots — a process that can flag simple mistakes, like using an outdated address when voting.

“Getting registered to vote is not something that many people necessarily remember,” said Joshua Blank, the research director of the Texas Politics Project. “And in the process of moving, it's very likely that this would not be on the top of their list of things to address, like changing their electricity, gas providers and forwarding all their mail.”

Without more granular data on first-time voter registrations filed online, it’s difficult to determine whether the option has had a significant impact on Texas’ overall registration numbers, Blank added. More than 17 million people are registered to vote in Texas.

Still, it’s doubtful that GOP leaders would embrace an expansion of online registration in Texas, which has some of the nation’s strictest voting laws. Republicans have long declined to allow any online voter registration, saying it would lead to an increase in election fraud — even as 63 percent of Texas voters would support such a system, according to an October 2020 poll by the Texas Politics Project.

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The availability of online registration “flies in the face” of Texas’ current approach to voting policies, Blank said. The GOP-led Legislature spent months earlier this year campaigning for a sweeping elections bill that, in part, restricted voting hours in some parts of the state, prohibited drive-thru and overnight voting, and introduced new ID requirements for mail-in ballot applications.

“Texas has been at the forefront recently of enacting strict voting laws, and, in truth, has been at the forefront of enacting strict voting laws for much of the last decade,” Blank said. “Even in an area like this, where I think a majority of voters … say that we should expand online voter registration, it’s unlikely that you’d see something like this move in Texas.”

But advocates say they’ll continue to push for a extensive online registration system — and, if possible, automatic voter registration. Both changes would not only facilitate access to the ballot box, but also address longstanding racial inequities in Texas’ voter rolls, said Marziani of the Texas Civil Rights Project.

Texas is one of eight states that does not offer the online option for all adults, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

“The data from this limited online system shows that if the option is available, millions of people will use it,” said Charlie Bonner, a spokesperson for the advocacy group MOVE Texas. “Every Texas voter should now have equal access to online voter registration. This proves that it works, that it’s secure, and that it is something people will use.”

Online registration requests in Texas' five largest counties, as of Dec. 17, 2021.

Source: Texas Secretary of State

Cayla Harris covers state politics and education out of Hearst's Austin bureau. She previously covered New York state government for the Albany Times Union.

She is a 2019 graduate of the George Washington University, where she studied journalism and Spanish. During her time in D.C., she interned for the Hearst Washington bureau.

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