Texas attorney general seeks stay of mail-in ballot order

AUSTIN, Texas – Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Saturday filed a request for an emergency stay of a federal judge’s injunction that blocked Gov. Greg Abbott’s order dramatically reducing places where voters could drop off mail ballots during early voting in the November elections.

The motion, filed with the Fifth District U.S. Court of Appeals, contends that U.S. District Judge Robert Pittman lacks jurisdiction and calls the injunction he issued Friday unlawful.

Abbott’s Oct. 1 order allowed only one mail ballot drop-off site per county, no matter its size, which the judge said likely violates the right to vote.

In a statement, Paxton noted that Abbott’s order would improve the security of the ballots.

“The district court’s order undermines our election security, disrupts the democratic process, and will only lead to voter confusion. It cannot stand,” Paxton said.

“Mail-in ballots are particularly vulnerable to fraud,” added Paxton, who echoed unsubstantiated claims repeatedly made by President Donald Trump.