A backlog of voter registration applications tied to Texas DPS online services has left thousands of Texans unsure whether their registration actually went through, and smaller counties are feeling the squeeze. Rockwall County received about 3,500 delayed records with an elections office of only five full-time employees. Harris County worked through roughly 75,000 delayed records and cleared its backlog by October 3, and El Paso County finished before the October 5 registration deadline. With early voting beginning October 19, counties without those resources are still racing to process the remaining files.

Rockwall County Elections Administrator Christopher Lynch says his bigger worry isn’t the workload, it’s how the delay happened at all, pointing to what he calls a disconnect between DPS and the state. The Texas Secretary of State’s Office says affected voters still have a path: vote provisionally, and the ballot will count once the DPS transaction is verified. The Texas Department of Public Safety did not respond to a request for comment.

For voters here in Ellis County and across the region, the takeaway is straightforward. Check your registration status now on the Texas Secretary of State’s website. If you registered through DPS and your name isn’t showing up, don’t skip the election. Show up, explain the situation, and request a provisional ballot. Have you checked your registration yet, and did everything come back the way you expected?