AP: Texas

02/08/2005

By KELLEY SHANNON  / Associated Press

More than three months after the November election, state officials don't have a final tally of how many provisional votes were cast and counted in Texas.

Provisional vote totals remain in question for 29 counties. Local election officials had to report provisional votes in a lengthy federal survey. Some counties have not yet responded. For 10 of the 29 counties a computer registered the provisional vote total as zero, possibly inaccurately, Bill Kenyon, spokesman for the Texas secretary of state's office, said Monday.

The agency is following up with the 29 counties to verify their totals.

"We're setting a target of trying to get everything by the end of this month," Kenyon said. State elections officials intended to have provisional vote totals from all 254 Texas counties by the end of January.

So far the tally shows that 35,282 provisional votes were cast statewide. Of those, 7,156 were determined to be valid and were counted.

A provisional vote may be cast if a voter shows up on Election Day but it isn't clear whether he or she is eligible to vote. The voter may cast a ballot with a signed affidavit stating the reasons he or she is qualified.

The ballot is kept separate from others and is only counted later if it's determined the person was registered to vote.

This voting method was created in the Help America Vote Act, a federal law passed in 2002 after the Florida recount of the 2000 presidential election. Last year was the first time the method was used in Texas elections.

Before the new federal law, a "challenge ballot" could be cast in Texas if voter eligibility was in question. The ballot was tagged and counted, then excluded later if was determined to be invalid.

No state race outcomes from November hinge on provisional vote totals.

Lack of familiarity with provisional voting and with the survey seems to be the reason for some counties' tardiness, Kenyon said.

"It's a pretty extensive survey. It's way more than just provisional votes. These folks have never had to do this before," he said. "There's no active resistance or cantankerousness involved. It's just trying to do something for the first time."

Van Zandt County, one of those on the list of 29, had no trouble with the survey and reported results via the Internet on Dec. 14, said Shannon Myers, deputy county clerk.

"We had quite a few (provisional votes), and we reported those," she said.

A total of 79 provisional ballots were cast in the county. Twelve were determined to be valid and were counted, Myers said.

However, the county showed up as having zero provisional votes with the secretary of state's office. It is one of those the agency is checking with to verify numbers, Kenyon said.

The other counties on the list has having zero provisional votes or as not reporting at all are Andrews, Bailey, Baylor, Childress, Collingsworth, Crane, Culberson, Dawson, Dickens, Glassock, Hardeman, Hidalgo, Hood, Irion, Jackson, Kendall, Kenedy, Kent, King, Loving, Motley, Nacogdoches, Sterling, Stonewall, Sutton, Terrell, Yoakum and Young.

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On the Net:

Texas Secretary of State's Office: www.sos.state.tx.us