Texas Republicans Renew Voting Restriction Bill During Special Session
Demonstrators are gathered outside of the Texas State Capitol during a voting rights rally on the first day of the 87th Legislature's special session on July 8, 2021 in Austin, Texas. Republican Gov. Greg Abbott called the legislature into a special session, asking lawmakers to prioritize his agenda items that include overhauling the states voting laws, bail reform, border security, social media censorship, and critical race theory. Tamir Kalifa/Getty Images

Texas Republicans pushed a new voting restriction bill during their special session despite the Democrats' refusal to vote on the said measure.

Republicans seek to prohibit 24-hour polling places, ban drop boxes, and stop drive-thru voting on the new measure this weekend. The first major vote on the proposals is expected this week, according to an Associated Press News report.

Democrats, on the other hand, are calling for a second walkout to prevent the voting restrictions from being pushed forward.

Democrat lawmakers in Texas earlier walked out in May, breaking the quorum.

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Voting Restrictions Bill

The new set of measures do not include some of the more controversial points that were added to the previous bill in the final hours of the session in May, which included a provision that would restrict voting on Sundays.

The previous measure also stated that it would allow election officials to overturn election results if there are fraud claims, according to an NPR report.

The latest bills that Republicans are pushing forward include a new identification requirement for people voting by mail. It would also not allow election officials from sending a vote-by-mail application to voters who have not requested one.

James Slattery, a senior staff attorney with the Texas Civil Rights Project, said that voters of color and shift workers were the ones who used most of these methods of voting last year.

Slattery said that considering the ban on those forms of voting would directly affect voters of color.

The bills would also expand partisan poll watchers more authority during the election. They can observe during voting and are prohibited from being removed for violating election law.

Slattery said it would make it harder to control disruptive partisan poll watchers when they are acting aggressively or disrupting voting.

There would be also new criminal penalties and requirements for folks who assist voters at polls or people who assist others planning to vote by mail.

Texas Republicans said that concerns about election integrity should be addressed despite having no evidence of a widespread problem with voting in the state.

State Rep. Travis Clardy, a Republican, said that he does not doubt the legitimacy of elections in the state.

Clardy said that this is a preventive measure for them, adding that it is an issue and it is their job to ensure that it does not cause a problem.

Democrats Walkout

In May, Democrats have walked out in the Texas House of Representatives to block the voting restrictions.

Democratic state Rep. Carl Sherman said that they want more people to participate in democracy, with the bill's case it seems it is not the case.

Democratic House leader Rep. Chris Turner said that he texted members of his caucus telling them to leave the chamber, according to another NPR report.

Gov. Greg Abbott responded by saying that there will be no pay for those who walked out of their responsibilities.

Abbott had threatened to cut off the funding for the Legislature through a veto.

In June, Abbott had objected and disapproved the appropriations for legislative agencies, affecting its staffers, according to a Texas Tribune report.

Turner responded and said that Texas has a governor and not a dictator.

This article is owned by Latin Post

Written by Mary Webber

WATCH: Texas Democrats Fight Restrictive Voting Bills During Special Session - from MSNBC