Panhandle Republican group wants all Texas ballots hand counted in the Nov. 3 election

The Potter County Republican Party has asked a federal judge in Amarillo to require every Texas ballot to be hand counted before the results of the Nov. 3 midterm elections can be certified.

The group’s lawsuit argues that voting machines may be susceptible to outside manipulation, but does not provide proof of vulnerabilities in equipment or the process of counting votes and certifying election results. The lawsuit specifies that it is not alleging that past Potter County or statewide election results have been altered or inaccurately reported.

Instead, the lawsuit cites potential for interference from artificial intelligence programs or “malicious actors” taking advantage of voting machine “components manufactured by foreign adversaries” such as China.

The petition asserts such potential interference can only be detected by a hand count of ballots to compare results with those tabulated by voting machines.

“If a component is tampered with during manufacturing, it could serve as a point-of-entry for unlawful and malfeasance hackers, allowing for the possibility of synchronized attacks across multiple election machines and jurisdictions,” the lawsuit said.

When voting machines are used, Texas law requires a portion of paper ballots to be hand counted to verify the accuracy of machine tabulations. That audit, the lawsuit argues, is not enough.

“The paper record or ballot provides an independent verification mechanism only if election officials actually compare a complete hand-count of all of the paper records or ballots,” the petition said.

Texans cast 11.4 million ballots in the 2024 general election and 8.1 million in the 2022 midterms, according to the Texas secretary of state.

Potter County, in the Texas Panhandle, includes Amarillo. The 27-page lawsuit names Potter County’s election administrator but seeks to include voting officials in every county via class action.

The petition was filed Tuesday in Amarillo federal court and was assigned to U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, who was nominated by President Donald Trump in 2017. Kacsmaryk is a favorite judge for conservative lawyers, including Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, and his previous rulings include suspending federal approval of an abortion drug that was overturned by the Supreme Court.

This is a developing story.