Here's What Happened When a Local Texas DA Tried to Vote in Her Primary Last Night

Kim Ogg is no longer the district attorney for Harris County, Texas. She was defeated in the Democratic primary by Sean Teare, but that’s just one part of this election story. Ms. Ogg was denied voting yesterday morning because someone had cast a ballot in her name. It’s not a major election that puts voter integrity concerns front and center, or at least it should. This issue isn’t some phantom threat, which is often the reaction from liberals when anyone talks about voter integrity. Someone voted in Ms. Ogg’s name—that’s a problem.

Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg went into Love Park Community Center Tuesday morning to cast a ballot for her own primary race — only to be told someone had already voted in her name, according to spokesperson Michael Kolenc.https://t.co/5do5dIDPyj pic.twitter.com/yQXvWgJQsO
— Houston Chronicle (@HoustonChron) March 5, 2024

A lot of questions about my voting issue today. As an update- I WAS able to vote this afternoon after initially being denied early in the morning.

Folks, don’t let MY issue dissuade you. Your voice matters. Get out there and vote for public safety! https://t.co/XzU8APFf8M
— Kim Ogg (@ReElectDAKimOgg) March 6, 2024

In this case, it was a mix-up between Ms. Ogg and her partner, who share the same address. That’s what led to the latter casting a ballot in the now-ex-district attorney’s name (via The Independent):

In a statement posted on X, Harris County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth said Ms Ogg was unable to vote after her partner – with whom she shares an address – inadvertently cast a ballot in her name during early voting last week.
“In the process of qualifying a voter, each voter is asked to review and confirm the information that appears on the iPad screen, including the voter’s name. If the information that appears on the screen is not accurate, the voter must notify the election clerk.
“In this instance, the DA’s partner must not have noticed that the information was not hers, and proceeded to sign in and vote under DA Ogg’s name. We believe this is the case because DA Ogg’s partner signed her own name as confirmation,” Ms Hudspeth added.

Even though this instance turned out to be a clerical error, discussions over new laws aimed at enhancing the guardrails in our elections shouldn’t be dismissed. There have been numerous cases of voter fraud that supporters of both parties have committed. Let’s not forget that in 2020, the council races in Paterson, New Jersey, had to be declared null and void over fraud concerns. It’s not some imaginary issue, Democrats. It happens.

Back in Harris County, Ms. Ogg’s loss appears to be a blow for those who support basic public safety measures. She’s no MAGA Republican, obviously, but the reason why she got booted and who lined up against her says everything (via Texas Tribune):

Ogg has taken flak from local Democrats for reneging on criminal justice reform promises, her alleged links to Texas Republicans and increasing resignations in her office. Over two terms in office, she investigated members of her party and publicly clashed with Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, a high-profile local progressive who endorsed Teare.
In the months before the election, Teare promised to take more action on democratic reforms while Ogg fended off a firestorm of new allegations. Her office baselessly filed criminal charges in thousands of cases, the Houston Chronicle revealed. And recent reports claim she mishandled an investigation into a subversive Texas Republican.
Teare had the backing of a group of Harris County Democratic Party precinct chairs who recently voted to condemn Ogg for inadequately representing party values. In a University of Houston poll released during early voting, over 65 percent of likely Democratic primary voters said they viewed Ogg unfavorably.

Okay, there might have been some serious administrative issues, but Houston Democrats dominate the city. At least on paper, Ogg seemed disinclined to turn it into San Francisco.