Texas mail-in voting rules will remain strict

In August 2025, a federal appeals court upheld Texas’s mail-ballot ID-number matching rule, reversing a lower court's decision and putting the stricter requirement back in place. The matching rule goes back to SB 1 (2021), which added ID-number fields to both mail-in ballot applications and the mailed ballots themselves.

A person cannot vote by mail in Texas simply because they prefer to; they must qualify under one of five specific categories defined by the state - over 65, disabled, out of the country, close to giving birth, or in jail. Once they qualify, they must then provide matching ID numbers on both their registration forms and their ballots. If the numbers don't match exactly, their ballot will be rejected.

Why it Matters

The stricter the voting laws are, the more likely they will frustrate and disempower voters. Even for long-standing voters who consistently show up to participate in elections, adding one more rule means one less reason to exercise their right. The data speaks for itself:

In 2022, 30,000 Texans had either their mail-in application or mail-in ballot rejected ahead of the primary election. As a result, almost 90% of them never voted.
Of the 30,000 voters rejected, 16% were less likely to have voted later that year in the general election, despite having voted consistently in the last three general elections in Texas.