Harris County Voter Registrar investigates reports of voters using P.O. boxes as addresses

HARRIS COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) — The Harris County Voter Registrar is investigating reports of voters registering using post office box addresses, which is against Texas law.

The author of law SB1111 alerted the registrar to the issue. The law, which passed in 2021, makes it illegal to use a post office box as a residential address when registering to vote, except under a few exceptions, but it seems some aren’t complying.

State Senator Paul Bettencourt authored SB 1111 four years ago to prevent people from registering to vote outside their districts using P.O. boxes.

“You don’t live in this 2×3 inch box,” Senator Bettencourt told ABC13. “So, pick any voter registration physical address that you want, but don’t say, ‘I live in a 2×3 inch P.O. box.’ You can get your mail there, you just can’t register to vote there.”

Last month, Bettencourt reported that voters were doing just that at a UPS store on Waugh and another on Westheimer. The Harris County Registrar investigated and found 125 such voters, 16 of whom were already suspended.

In a letter to the Texas Secretary of State on Dec. 18, the office wrote it values “the importance of proper voter roll maintenance and has taken additional steps to flag the identified addresses to help prohibit future unauthorized use.”

Five days later, the Secretary of State’s office wrote, “Our office acknowledges and appreciates your diligent and timely efforts.”

Bettencourt has been at the forefront of the effort to address election integrity. He acknowledged he does not see widespread fraud here, but wants voters to cast their ballots where they should.

“To have an accurate voter roll, you need to get people to register once at a place they live, they’re domiciled, or whatever their physical address happens to be, and just get it done,” he said.

There are some exceptions to the law, including those for military personnel stationed overseas, law enforcement, judges, and domestic violence survivors.

Mark Jones is a political science fellow at the Baker Institute at Rice University. While he agrees with Bettencourt, there could be a more proactive approach – voter fraud is not a concern.

“Our evidence of fraud in elections is slim to none,” Jones said. “Many Republican primary voters and people who vote Republican believe that fraud is a serious problem, and so they very much like to see Senator Bettencourt and other elected Republican officials doing everything in their power to fight against potential fraud.”

The Harris County Voter Registrar’s Office sent ABC13 the following statement:

“The Harris County Tax Office is committed to maintaining an accurate voter roll and putting voters first. As made clear by the Secretary of State’s letter on Dec. 23, 2025, the Tax Office took diligent and timely action to address the concerns raised in Senator Bettencourt’s complaint. Once it was brought to our attention, our office followed the process established by the Secretary of State and the Texas Election Code. We will continue to work with the Secretary of State and other stakeholders to ensure our voter rolls are accurate, our statutory duties are met, and that every eligible voter can cast their ballot with confidence.”

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