On July 6, 2023, Harris County Attorney Christian D. Menefee announced that a lawsuit against Texas officials challenging the constitutionality of Senate Bill (SB) 1750 had been filed. This new law targets Harris County, the most populous and diverse county in Texas that encompasses Houston and the surrounding areas, by eliminating the position of elections administrator.

Some officials say that SB 1750 has clear political motivations since its criteria target one of the largest left-leaning cities that exist in a red state by controlling its elections. "The bill bans you from creating an elections administrator office in any county with a population over 3.5 million (only Harris County at this time). Importantly, the provision that we take special issue with that abolishes the elections administrator’s office will only ever apply to Harris County
because it only applies to populations that meet the criteria on September 1, 2023," said County Attorney Menefee regarding the intentional specifications of the bill.

This lawsuit has been filed because of the bill’s unconstitutional nature. The Texas Constitution prohibits the state from passing laws that only apply to one county. With the stipulations outlined in the bill, Harris County will be the only county impacted despite the position of elections administrator existing in over half of Texas’s 254 counties.

Many argue that problems with past Harris County elections are a reason to abolish the elections administrator’s office and distribute their duties to the county clerk and county tax assessor-collector. However, removing an office with more than 150 employees that work to ensure the county conducts fair and accessible elections would only stretch the Harris County Clerk and Harris County Tax Assessor/Collector’s offices thin and create a conflict of interest within elections.

Eliminating the elections administrator position could potentially enable corruption to occur within the offices to which its powers would be delegated. The county clerk and county tax assessor/collector, both of which are elected officials, would wield significant influence over their own elections, thereby creating an environment where their respective interests are favored. To protect the integrity of the electoral process and safeguard against any potential corruption in election affairs, it is imperative that the county maintain its election administrator's office.

Harris County Attorney Menefee, along with Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, have made statements denouncing SB 1750 and other bills that attempt to control Harris County elections. "Harris County is one of the most diverse counties in the state. We can’t and won’t allow legislators in Austin to target us to disrupt our elections and undermine our local officials. If people out there want to ignore the Constitution and allow far-right lawmakers to go after us in this way, Harris County residents deserve to know. We’ll see what the courts say," said County Attorney Menefee in a recent press release. [1]