Texas Open Election System Texas

Texas Open Election System

Texas Election Systems

The United States is a democratic country where people are constitutionally entitled to certain rights such as equality and voting rights. But this principle does not always work perfectly in reality. There are flaws and loopholes that can be exploited by some people, especially corrupt officials. Abraham Lincoln's dictum that the government should be by the people, of the people, and for the people is often violated by elected officials and rich people who run for public offices with the support of interest groups. The state of Texas is not an exception in the country. In fact, the level of corruption in elections in Texas may be higher than it is in some other states. These problems have some serious implications for the healthy functioning of democracy. The Texans should use the Constitution to hold public officials accountable and put an end to the growing levels of corruption among elected officials.

Texas is considered to be a state with one of the strongest interest group systems. It is partly due to the fact that for much of the twentieth century, Texas was characterized by weak political parties. For a long time, Texas had a one-party system dominated by the Democratic Party, and this weak system contributed to the rise of factions and personalities and the development of interest-group systems. Political power in Texas is generally held at the hands of the "Texas Establishment," a group of elite men who have monopolized power and access to leadership positions. In the last several decades, Texas has become a more pluralized society but the grip on power held by the "Texas Establishment" is still largely there. These political leaders are supported by interest groups in oil and gas, agriculture, and finance spheres. Another interest group that has lately gained power in Texas is the Religious Right, helping the Republican Party win numerous elections (Dye et al.).

The voting system in Texas today is certainly sophisticated and generally follows the rest of the country. The Voting Rights Act protects the voting rights of racial and ethnic minorities as well as women. The electronic system of voting is used in major elections. But while the progress has been made lately, and while money cannot buy elected officials or elections, it can buy access to them. For example, best financed campaigns win elections. This has a serious implication for fair and equal system of voter representation system advocated by the Constitution of the United States. It means that the elections are won not by those who are best qualified in terms of professionalism, responsiveness to the public, and intellect, but in terms of who has money or access to it. It is not surprising then that Texans are losing confidence and patience with their government ("Texas Voters Tiring of Corruption").

There is a growing concern among Texans about the violation of voters' rights by state legislators and other elected officials. The frustration is sometimes encouraging concerned citizens to report cases to the federal government. For example, on October 21, 2009, the Legal Center and Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) sent a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder, urging him to investigate public corruption and violation of the Voting Rights Act and other federal laws involving Texas State Representative Dwayne Bohac and Harris Country elections office employee Ed Johnson. "The evidence indicates Mr. Bohac and others conspired to interfere with voting rights in violation of the law," the letter said. "Because our democracy depends on free and fair elections, the Department of Justice should investigate" ("Public Corruption Investigation Urged in Texas"). The letter specifically cited HB 1268 authorized by Bohac during 2005 legislative sessions, requiring voters to check a new box when providing a Social Security number instead of a driver's license number. This provision allowed voter registrars reject the applications where voters did not check the box or checked it mistakenly. 40,000 out of 70,000 rejected applications were results of Bohac's HB1268 provision.

The corruption certainly goes beyond these problems. According to a report by Texas Observer, numerous Texas officials elected to public positions use campaign money in violation of campaign regulations and advocate the interests of various interest groups in exchange for monetary and other material support. For instance, Troy Fraser has served in Texas Senate for fourteen years and has won two elections unopposed. His worst showing of the last decade was in 2008 which he won with 85% of the vote. He has amassed a whopping $1.3 million in campaign funds and of that 97% came out of special interest contributions. The Observer writes:

You might wonder what Fraser, with no competitive election in sight, is doing with all this campaign money.

He's living off it. Fraser, like all Texas legislators, is allowed to use campaign money to augment his lifestyle: to rent a condo, take his family on opulent trips and stay in exclusive hotels and resorts. Since he was elected in 2008, Fraser has spent more than $388,000 in campaign funds, most of it unrelated to any election. Fraser tapped campaign money to help pay for a trip with his wife to Park City, Utah, during ski season. He and his wife also used the money to travel to Hawaii, San Francisco and Monterey, Calif., England, Spain, Russia, Germany, Puerto Rico, Panama and Costa Rica, where they stayed at a $400-a-night resort nestled among some waterfalls. Under Texas law, he could legally use campaign money to pay for these trips as long as they could be somehow connected to state business (Mann & Rapoport).