Rockwall County begins early voting Monday, Oct. 19, after state officials said counties had cleared a backlog of voter registrations delayed by a Texas Department of Public Safety software error.

But a separate problem involving voter address updates surfaced this week, adding work for some county election offices just before voting begins.

Texas Secretary of State spokeswoman Alicia Pierce said officials were unaware of any county still holding applications from the DPS backlog, the Associated Press reported Oct. 15.

Rockwall County received approximately 3,500 delayed applications. Elections Administrator Christopher Lynch told Spectrum News on Oct. 9 that his five-person office was working overtime to process them.

“My folks have been working overtime and just really trying to whittle that number down,” Lynch said.

The DPS error delayed new registrations and updates submitted through its online services before they reached county election offices.

On Oct. 16, Votebeat reported a separate backlog affecting address updates submitted through Texas.gov between Sept. 1 and sometime the previous week. Not all counties were affected, and the report did not identify Rockwall County as receiving delayed records from that error.

Residents with questions should check their registration through the county elections website or call the elections office. Voters whose qualifying DPS registrations have not been processed can cast provisional ballots while officials verify their records, according to state and county officials quoted by Spectrum.

The League of Women Voters of Texas and MOVE Texas Civic Fund filed a lawsuit Oct. 9 challenging the state’s handling of voter registrations.

Early voting for the Nov. 3 general election runs through Oct. 30 at five Rockwall County locations:

  • Rockwall County Courthouse Annex: 1101 E. Yellowjacket Lane, Rockwall
  • Ernest Epps Education Center: 810 E. Old Greenville, Royse City
  • Fate City Hall: 1900 CD Boren Parkway, Fate
  • Heath City Hall: 200 Laurence Drive, Heath
  • Rowlett Utility Customer Service Center: 6602 Dalrock Road, Rowlett

According to the county’s official schedule, hours are:

  • Oct. 19–23: 8 a.m.–5 p.m.
  • Saturday, Oct. 24: 7 a.m.–7 p.m.
  • Sunday, Oct. 25: 10 a.m.–4 p.m., Courthouse Annex only
  • Oct. 26–30: 7 a.m.–7 p.m.

The joint election includes federal, state and county offices, along with elections for Fate and Wylie. The Rockwall County Elections Office can be reached at 972-204-6200.