UPDATE: 40,000-Plus Delayed Voter Records Landed in Collin County. How Did Texas Let This Happen?

Aqua RichJo| September 24, 2026

More than 40,000 voter registration records have landed in Collin County for review. That does not mean 40,000 people were left unregistered—but with Texas’ October 5 deadline approaching, voters deserve to know whether their own records made it through.

The records came from a backlog of applications and updates submitted through the Texas Department of Public Safety’s online driver’s-license portal. Some records were never sent to county voter registrars. State officials began delivering them to counties Tuesday night, and records in the backlog date back as far as October 2025, according to reporting by Votebeat and The Texas Tribune. (The Texas Tribune)

Collin County Elections Administrator Kaleb Breaux said his office had received more than 40,000 additional records as of Wednesday. His staff must sort out which are new registrations, which are updates to existing records and which are duplicates. The county has seven permanent voter registration employees and brought in 10 temporary workers. Breaux said more help may be needed once the county knows how much processing remains. (The Texas Tribune)

That distinction matters. Forty thousand records under review is not a count of 40,000 affected voters. Texas has not established how many individuals are affected statewide, exactly when the problem began or what caused it. DPS says the system issue has been resolved, but it has not publicly explained the cause or the full scope. (The Texas Tribune)

And here is the part that deserves a louder question: How did records sit in a state system for months while people had reason to believe their registration or address update was on its way? County workers now have to investigate the backlog during the rush before an election deadline, while making sure an older DPS record does not replace a voter’s newer information. (The Texas Tribune)

Used the DPS portal? Check your registration now.

Go to Texas’ official “Am I Registered?” tool and confirm your status and address. Keep any DPS transaction confirmation. If your information is missing or wrong, contact your county voter registrar promptly. Texas lists October 5, 2026, as the registration deadline for the November 3 election. If you need to submit a new application using the state’s online form, you must print it and send it to your county voter registrar; filling out the form on screen alone does not complete registration. (VoteTexas.gov)

State officials say a voter missing from the rolls because of this DPS error can ask to cast a provisional ballot. Election officials would count it after verifying that the voter registered through DPS by the applicable deadline. That verification is essential, so save your records and ask your county office what steps apply to you. (The Texas Tribune)

No Chill News wants answers from Collin, Dallas, Denton and Tarrant counties: How many delayed records did each receive? How many remain unresolved? How many are new registrations? Do election workers have enough help to process them accurately? DPS and the Secretary of State’s office also owe Texans an explanation of what failed and how they will confirm that every affected voter is accounted for.

For now, do the check the state should have made unnecessary: verify your registration, save your confirmation and call your county office if something looks wrong.

Reporting basis: Votebeat and The Texas Tribune’s September 23 update and Texas’ official voter registration guidance. No Chill News has not independently obtained county backlog figures or interviewed the officials quoted above.