Appeals Court Reinstates Texas Mail-In Voting ID Rules

A federal appeals court has reinstated nine provisions of a 2021 Texas election law that set rules for mail-in voting and for people who help voters cast ballots. In an 11-page decision issued Wednesday, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a district judge's March 2025 order that had blocked those parts of Senate Bill 1. Judge Andrew Oldham wrote that most of the plaintiffs' claims failed for lack of standing and that one failed on the merits, and that none warranted interfering with the state legislature's efforts to address voter fraud and election integrity.

The restored provisions require mail ballot applicants to supply an identification number or Social Security number that matches state records, set out a process for correcting defective ballots, and require voters and those assisting them to sign an oath affirming the voter was not coerced. The challenges, consolidated from several lawsuits, argued the rules made voting too difficult for some voters with disabilities and violated the Americans with Disabilities Act. Texas allows mail voting for certain groups, including voters 65 and older and those who qualify because of a disability. The court noted that rejections of mail ballot applications or ballots over identification-number errors fell from 11% to 2.7% after the law took effect. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a defendant in the case, called the ruling a "major victory" in a social media post. Lawmakers passed Senate Bill 1 in 2021 after a contentious fight in which Texas House Democrats broke quorum in an unsuccessful attempt to block it.