'Dead' voter controversy raises even more concern Black districts got more letters than other groups

Terri Collins holds a letter from the county tax office saying it has learned that she is dead and will be taken off the voter registration record. Just a month earlier, she received her voter registration ID card. The voter purge was cancelled after complaints. less Terri Collins holds a letter from the county tax office saying it has learned that she is dead and will be taken off the voter registration record. Just a month earlier, she received her voter registration ID ... more Photo: Melissa Phillip Photo: Melissa Phillip Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close 'Dead' voter controversy raises even more concern 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Voters in traditionally African-American neighborhoods were disproportionately affected when Harris County officials notified 9,000 people their registrations could be cancelled unless they proved they were not deceased, according to a Chronicle analysis of data obtained from the Texas Secretary of State.

Already, 32 percent of voters who received "Are you dead?" letters across the county in September - just six weeks before the presidential elections - have confirmed they are very much alive, election officials said this week. Because of widespread complaints, no county voters will be purged before the November elections unless their deaths are independently confirmed, according to Don Sumners, the county's tax assessor collector and voter registrar.

The Chronicle's analysis showed that voters living in black districts - specifically created by lawmakers to enhance political representation of blacks on the county commission and the Texas Legislature - received more letters than voters in other districts. Nearly 2,900 live in Harris County Commissioner's Precinct 1 - a minority op portunity district created more than two decades ago that includes most of the county's historically black neighborhoods.

'Neutral party' needed?

In an emailed statement, Precinct 1 Commissioner E. Franco Lee, the only African-American on the Harris County Commissioner's Court, said he hasn't seen as many election problems "in the 27 years he's been in office." Lee said he intends to solicit help from the Harris County Attorney's Office and the U.S. Attorney to investigate.

"The recent mistakes let me know that we need a neutral party to look into the matter. And that's the U.S. Department of Justice," he said.

70,000 names

According to U.S. census estimates, African-Americans represent 19 percent of the voting-age population in Harris County.

The recent mailings were prompted by a state law, effective in September 2011, that required the Secretary of State to compare Social Security death data to voter records to help clean voter rolls statewide. As part of the process, state officials sent 70,000 names of possibly dead voters to voter registration officials across Texas.

However, each county used the lists differently. Harris County officials contacted every voter listed, while others did more research and sent fewer letters.

'A moral tragedy'

Rev. Reginald Lillie, president of the Houston NAACP, said faulty mass mailings just six weeks before the election erodes voter confidence.

"Our confidence in our county and our state officials to hold this election has been diminished. We're really concerned about Texas and it's a tragedy. It's a moral tragedy," Lillie said. "The trust factor and the credibility is just gone. This should be of concern to all Texans - this is not a Democratic issue. This is a civil rights issue - this is a constitutional right. No one should be able to stand by and think this doesn't affect them. It's part of the fabric of this society."

In Travis County, voters contacted by mistake filed a lawsuit to block proposed purges. Because of that litigation, Rich Parsons, a spokesman for the Secretary of State, said he could not comment Tuesday.

As of Oct.1, only 7 percent of the purported dead voters in Harris County had been confirmed. Though he's been critical of the state's decision to send out so many "weak matches," Sumners told the Chronicle that the process of comparing names, dates of birth and identification numbers in voter records and social security death data was race neutral. He suggested any disproportionate impact might relate to the aging of voters in historically black neighborhoods.

Most likely to be tagged

Across Texas, voters named Smith, Johnson, Williams, Jones, Brown, Davis, Garcia and Rodriguez were most likely to be tagged as possibly deceased in the recent clean-up effort, the Chronicle's analysis of all 70,000 voters identified as "weak matches" shows. Some surnames are particularly common among African-Americans. About 13,000 voters listed had last names associated with Hispanic heritage, according to a list maintained by the U.S. Census bureau.

Reform quickly OK'd

Despite the problems with clean-up attempts, the 2011 reform attracted no opposition in legislative hearings and was quickly approved by the Justice Department. Key lawmakers said the reform needs more work.

"Our election administrators need to ensure that properly registered voters aren't being purged erroneously just as much as they need to ensure that votes aren't being cast for people who are deceased," said Rep. Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood, the House elections committee chair.

Rep. Ana Hernandez Luna, D-Houston, the committee's vice chair said corrective measures must be considered, adding, "We're all in support of maintaining rolls that are clean and up-to-date but not at the peril of disenfranchising eligible voters."

lise.olsen@chron.com