Speaker Dade Phelan (R-Beaumont) released interim charges for House committees. He tasked the Committee on Elections with four charges, none of which explicitly included the unusually high rejection rate of absentee ballots and applications for absentee ballots after passage of Senate Bill 1 by Sen. Bryan Hughes (R-Mineola) in the second special session.The committee was asked to study:

• “All associated rulemaking and other governmental actions taken to ensure the intended legislative outcome of all legislation, including” House Bill 1382 by Rep. John Bucy (D-Cedar Park), House Bill 1622 by Rep. Ryan Guillen (R-Rio Grande City) and House Bill 3107 by Rep. Travis Clardy (R-Nacogdoches).
• “Whether reforms are needed to ensure that ballot language [for initiatives and propositions] is clear and unambiguous and the process is fair and consistent”
• “The effectiveness of new poll watcher training” required by Senate Bill 1; and
• “The reporting of election results following an election to determine the reasons for any delays and inaccuracies in the initial reporting of election results.”

Of the last item, Rep. Briscoe Cain (R-Deer Park), the committee’s chair, tweeted that he is “look[ing] forward to hearing testimony from Harris County.”

‍AG (Lean R): U.S. Rep. Lance Gooden (R-Terrell) endorsed Atty. Gen. Ken Paxton (R) in the runoff over Land Comm. George P. Bush (R).McKinney civil rights attorney Lee Merritt (D), who narrowly missed the runoff behind Joe Jaworski, endorsed Rochelle Garza (D).

‍HD19 open (Safe R): Burnet Co. Sheriff Calvin Boyd (R) and Burnet Co. Comms. Damon Beierle (R), Don Dockery (R), Jim Luther (R) and Billy Wall (R) endorsed Ellen Troxclair (R) in the runoff over Justin Berry (R).

‍CD15 open (Toss Up): U.S. Reps. Veronica Escobar (D-El Paso) and Sylvia Garcia (D-Houston) endorsed Michelle Vallejo in the runoff over Ruben Ramirez.‍

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