The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for March 5, 2026
The March 3rd Texas state primary was marred by anger, confusion and disenfranchisement, as voters simply tried to vote. Changes to party primary rules, an election department website crash, and conflicting court rulings meant many voters gave up or were turned away.
In Texas, political parties set most of the rules on how and where primary voting is done. In January, voting machine conspiracies drove county GOP leadership in Dallas and Williamson counties to switch from county-wide voting, allowing a voter to go to any polling place in the county to cast a vote, to an assigned precinct with separate voting machines by party. Votebeat Texas reports that Texas law forced Democrats to do the same.
Tuesday, many voters traveled to their past polling place, or one nearer their job, only to be told they couldn’t vote at that location. Compounding matters, 2 to 3-hour wait times were reported in Williamson County. Tuesday afternoon, the Dallas County Elections Department website crashed, and couldn’t provide the correct precinct to voters. The Dallas Morning News reported that frustrated voters with limited time headed to work or returned home.
At the request of the Democratic Party, a district court ordered the polls open for two additional hours, later overruled by the Texas Supreme Court, which disenfranchised voters who were not in line by 7 pm.
We have links to local reporting at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl.
Today’s Links
Articles & Resources:
Dallas Morning News – ‘Mass confusion’: How election day went awry for Dallas County voters
Votebeat Texas – Primary voters frustrated and confused after Dallas County switches to precinct-based voting
Votebeat Texas – Dallas and Williamson counties switch to precinct-level voting for primary election day
KUT News – Williamson County says full Republican election results will likely not be available until Wednesday
NBC News – Voting confusion in Texas rooted in conspiracy theories about ballot counting
Groups Taking Action:
League of Women Voters Dallas, Common Cause TX, ACLU TX
Register or Check Your Voter Registration:
U.S. Election Assistance Commission – How to Register And Vote in Your State
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