Ahead of Election Day, two of Texas' largest counties are gearing up for potential intervention from the state or federal government.
The preparation comes as President Donald Trump's administration is already seeking to intervene in California and Alaska's elections, and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's office challenges get-out-the-vote efforts in Harris County.
Harris County Attorney Abbie Kamin, whose office serves as legal counsel for county government, has set up an election protection legal taskforce of over 30 attorneys. In an interview with Houston Public Media, she said the team includes former employees of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), who she recruited for their expertise in civil rights and voting rights.
Kamin also tapped prominent voting rights attorney Chad Dunn as outside counsel, along with additional subject matter experts who she declined to name but said would be focused on threats from the federal government.
She pointed to a recent video statement from U.S. Attorney Aaron Reitz as an example of a threat. "If you violate federal election law, I will hunt you down and prosecute you," Reitz said in the statement.
"Whether it's the president's playbook of desperation, a corrupt state attorney general that may also get very desperate, or a governor that has failed Texans and made it very clear that he has bent the knee to the president regardless of the legality of a matter, we're not going to allow any agency at any level to trample on the rights of eligible voters," said Kamin, a Democrat who is running for re-election against Republican opponent Jacqueline Smith.
Gov. Greg Abbott's office declined to respond to Kamin's comments and deferred questions about election-related preparations to the Texas Secretary of State's office, which did not respond. Attorney General Ken Paxton's office also did not respond to questions.
The Travis County Attorney's Office said it has made similar preparations to those in Harris. Spokeswoman Diana Melendez said the office had "consulted with our counterparts in local jurisdictions and taken extra precautions to plan and anticipate scenarios that may impact a voter's protected right to cast their ballot."
Melendez added that the office also got authority from the Travis County Commissioners Court to file proactive litigation "to protect the right to vote" if necessary. The office is led by Democrat Delia Garza, who is not up for re-election this year.
Dallas County administrator Darryl Martin said the county has not pre-authorized any legal action, but the District Attorney would take action if necessary. The Dallas County DA's office acts as legal counsel for county government, unlike in Harris and Travis counties.
'Debacle' in 2022 midterms leads to lawsuits and legislation targeting Harris County
Harris County, which covers most of Houston and is the most populous in the state, faced intense scrutiny and intervention from the state government after the most recent midterm election.
In 2022, paper ballot shortages and offline voting machines led to long wait times and some voters being turned away at a handful of polling sites.
The issues also triggered several GOP-backed lawsuits that challenged the results of the election. A five-month investigation by Houston Public Media found that issues with Harris County's administration of the 2022 election weren't likely to have affected the outcome of races on the ballot.
Texas' Republican-led Legislature targeted Harris County during the state legislative session the following year. Lawmakers abolished the county's elections office and gave the Secretary of State oversight to investigate election and voter registration complaints specifically in Harris County.
Earlier this year, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott said that the county "should be stripped of operating elections" while referencing a Houston Public Media report about the local tax office finding more than 100 voter registrations linked to P.O. boxes in violation of state law.
Harris County commissioners, who are mostly Democrats, have argued that efforts to scrutinize the county's election administration are politically charged and intended to undermine the county's credibility.
Harris County GOP Chair Cindy Siegel argued the state's scrutiny and intervention was warranted, calling the 2022 election a "debacle," and she criticized the commissioners court for allowing Kamin to file proactive election-related litigation.
"Is Harris County unfairly targeted? No," Siegel said. "It's all things that under the county leadership by Democrats, it's things that occurred and that's the reason the legislature had to step in."
The Harris County Clerk's Office has already faced litigation from the state.
Paxton filed a lawsuit last week over what he described as "racially discriminatory advertisements."
The clerk's office had used an audience-targeting tool to deliver voting-related informational messages on social media. Kamin announced an "interim agreement" with the attorney general's office on Friday, after the county stopped using the audience-targeting tool.
In a statement, Kamin's office said the county "remains confident that its outreach efforts to our diverse communities is lawful," and the agreement was intended to "keep the focus on the important election at hand."
"Ken Paxton is clearly grasping at straws, trying to remain relevant and manufacture distraction," Kamin said. "We have seen bad actors try to lay the groundwork to undermine confidence in our elections and our democratic process. We won't stand for it. We will continue to defend Harris County and every eligible voter's rights."
Andrew Weber contributed to this report.
Copyright 2026 KUT News