A county judge, a former elections administrator and three other elected officials are among a half-dozen people indicted in an alleged “vote harvesting” scheme in a small south Texas county, state Attorney General Ken Paxton announced Wednesday.
“Elected officials who think they can cheat to stay in power will be held accountable. No one is above the law,” Paxton said in a statement.
According to Paxton’s office, Frio County Judge Rochelle Camacho faces three counts of vote harvesting; former county elections administrator Carlos Segura faces one count of evidence tampering; Pearsall City Council members Ramiro Trevino and Racheal Garza face one count each of vote harvesting; Pearsall Independent School District Trustee Adriann Ramirez faces three counts of vote harvesting; and campaign worker Rosa Rodriguez faces two counts of vote harvesting.
Frio County has a population of about 18,000 residents and is about 65 miles southwest of San Antonio.
Republicans have long sought to curb the role of intermediaries in elections, but critics contend that some voters rely on third parties to ensure their ballots are turned in on time.
The Texas Legislature approved a sweeping election law overhaul in 2021 that, among other provisions, outlawed “vote harvesting services,” essentially collecting ballots in exchange for compensation or in massive amounts.
The law is being challenged in court, which prompted a temporary hold on state investigations into vote harvesting claims last year, but Paxton appealed and was allowed to continue seeking charges.
The League of United Latin American Citizens, a voting rights advocacy group, has accused Paxton, who is running against Sen. John Cornyn (R) in Texas’s 2026 Senate election, of targeting Hispanic and Democratic voters.
According to a tally last year from the National Conference of State Legislatures, 35 states allow voters to authorize someone else to return their ballots.
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