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Brazos County IT says it is investigating claims that poll-pad records were compromised; county leader corrects report about DHS
Summary
After a public commenter distributed records alleging a no-ink poll-pad/e-poll system was compromised elsewhere and urged Brazos County to stop using the system, Chief Information Officer Eric Caldwell said county IT is investigating and will report back at the next meeting; the judge clarified that there is no evidence DHS is investigating elections and counsel noted a subpoena had been received.
A member of the public told the Brazos County Commissioners Court on May 5 that records distributed at a prior meeting suggested a no-ink poll-pad/e-poll system used in another county had been ‘‘compromised’’ and that invalid check-in records implied improper ballots had been issued.
The public commenter suggested Brazos County suspend use of the same system, citing a provision of the Texas election code. The court then heard a response from Eric Caldwell, who identified himself: “I’m Eric Caldwell. I’m the chief information officer for Brazos County…we are looking into this and we hope to have something to present to the court when you meet next in another two weeks,” he said.
Cindy Wy, a member of the public, told the court she had submitted two letters from four professional election-administration associations to the Secretary of State documenting statewide failures in election-management systems and asked the court to direct the county’s election administrator to publish a written report within 30 days after the primary runoff addressing whether Brazos County experienced wrong-ballot assignments, data corruption, downtime or other problems.
Later in the public-comment period, a community member raised concerns about a Department of Homeland Security action; counsel for the court corrected the record that the county had received a subpoena (not a broader investigation). The presiding judge also stated to the public that “there is absolutely no evidence that the DHS is investigating elections.”
What’s next: County IT said it will continue its review and present findings to the court at the next regular meeting in approximately two weeks. The citizen request for a formal 30-day report to be produced by the county election administrator was recorded as a public request; the court did not record a specific directive or timeline in the meeting minutes other than the IT follow-up.
Direct quotes and claims:
• Public concern (paraphrased): materials distributed alleged the no-ink poll-pad/e-poll system was compromised in another county and that some invalid check-in records may have resulted in ballots being issued.
• Eric Caldwell (CIO): “We are looking into this and we hope to have something to present to the court when you meet next in another two weeks.”
• County Judge (clarifying DHS matter): “There’s absolutely no evidence that the DHS is investigating elections.”
The court did not take immediate policy action during the meeting; staff indicated further review and a follow-up presentation would be scheduled.
