Normally, in mid-January of every even-numbered year, persons registered to vote in Harris County get their new voter certificate in the mail, but this year the new voter cards will be delayed.
The delay is because the 2012 redistricting maps drawn by the Texas Legislature are in dispute and the matter is in the hands of the U.S. Supreme Court.
Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector Don Sumners, whose office also handles voter registration, said the new cards cannot be issued until the Supreme Court rules.
“My office cannot prepare and mail the new certificates until the court has approved the final maps. Only after that can voters be assigned to the correct voting precinct,” Sumners said.
The Democratic and Republican party primaries have also been delayed by the same dispute and now are scheduled for April 3.
Despite the wait, Sumners said the delayed registration certificates “will not interfere with anyone’s right to vote.”
“I and my Voter Registration Department will support and protect the rights of every qualified voter,” Sumners said. “We will prepare and mail every certificate as soon as we can after the Supreme Court decides this case. Look for a new certificate – yellow and white this year – soon after the decision is final.”
Thank you very much for this information. Although I don’t live in Harris County now, but in Fort Bend County, I knew that my current voter certificate expired on December 31, 2011 and was beginning to get concerned about it being lost.