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GALVESTON -- Voters who thought they had registered with the Texas Department of Public Safety arrived at the polls Tuesday only to be told that they were not registered.

Meanwhile, state and county officials seemed confused about how the process is supposed to work.

It wasn’t the first election during which problems arose with Texas’ “Motor Voter” system.

Dropped Votes

More than seven months ago, Blake Henshaw of League City renewed his license in a Harris County Department of Public Safety office and checked the box on his application to renew his voter registration.

When he arrived at his polling place Tuesday, he was told he was not registered.

His wife renewed her license and voter registration on the department’s Web site. She also visited a polling place during early voting only to be told she was not registered.

Henshaw said the county clerk’s office told him they had received complaints from about 12 others with the same problem. They referred him to the voter registration department of the county tax office.

“(Voter registration) said that it was the Department of Public Safety’s fault,” Henshaw said. “I then asked them if it was the state or the county who dropped the ball. They hung up on me.”

Henshaw said he called back and was given instructions to cast a provisional vote, a process that had not been explained to his wife.

“There are two issues of miscommunication here. The voter registration process is unclear,” he said. “The possibility of provisional voting is not apparent.”

“It’s almost like they’re trying to hide it.”

Voter Edward Clack reported that when he requested a provisional ballot, poll workers claimed to not know what they were.

Scott Haywood, director of communications for the Texas secretary of state’s office, said the county is responsible for properly training poll workers to offer provisional voting as an option.

The decision to count a provisional ballot lies with the county early voting ballot board. The voter registration department can make recommendations, but the board makes the final determination.

“Election officials should be letting people know about the opportunity to vote provisionally,” Haywood said.

The voter registration department said that 265 provisional ballots were 0.4 percent of 66,158 total votes in the county. The total number of registered voters in the county is 187,606.

Motor Voter

The National Voter Registration Act of 1993, also known as the “Motor Voter Act,” was created to register more voters by letting them do so when they got their driver’s licenses.

According to the United States Department of Justice Web site, when the act became effective in most states on Jan. 1, 1995, several states failed to take the steps necessary to comply with the law.

Since then, the department has sued several states to force them to comply.

However, problems in Galveston County were still apparent Tuesday.

Tela Mange, public spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Public Safety, said that voter registration forms are sent from driver’s license offices to the county clerk’s offices. After that, the department has no control over the process, she said.

But the Galveston County clerk’s office said the process is handled entirely by the voter registration department of the tax assessor-collector’s office.

When informed of this, Mange said, “The driver’s license folks know where to send it. I’m just the spokesperson.”

Applicants can renew or apply for a license at any driver’s license office in the state. If they choose to register to vote as well, the voter registration form needs to be sent to the voter’s county of his residence.

Mange said that sometimes driver’s licenses offices mistakenly send them to the office’s home county instead.

Mange said she did not know the voter registration process after that point.

“We don’t do it, so I don’t worry about it,” she said.

Dominique Allen, Galveston County voter registration coordinator, said that her office treats voter registration forms from the DPS the same as any other, and it checks to make sure it is from a county resident.

Other problems

Other problems occur when people renew licenses online.

Mange said that if you check a box for voter registration on the department’s Web site, a separate message appears directing the user to the secretary of state’s Web site to register.

Mange said many people miss these instructions.

Mange said her office had fielded complaints about voter registration, and that most of them had to do with the department’s Web site.

Henshaw’s wife tried to renew her license and voter registration online.

“My wife and I are college-educated people. I’m in my third year of law school. If the process is unclear for us, how hard is it to understand for those with less education and resources?” he asked.

Mary Ann Daigle, Galveston County clerk, said Tuesday that her office had also received several complaints regarding registration through the DPS. She said residents thought they had registered, but on Election Day were told they hadn’t.

“There is nothing we can do at this point,” she said.

This issue is a repeat of the 2004 general election, when Daigle’s office received similar complaints.

Allen said the voter registration department had received complaints Tuesday in regard to voter registration

Cheryl Johnson, Galveston County tax assessor/collector, said Friday that there are issues with motor voting across the state.

She said the public safety department has all voters fill out a first-time voter registration form as opposed to the address change form the voter registration department provides.

She said this process creates more work for the voter registration department, causing them to research and update previous registration information.

Johnson also said that the majority of undeliverable voter ID cards started with public safety department forms.

When this happens, registration is suspended and her office attempts to contact the voter again through the mail.

“We’ve recognized that it is a problem, but we’re not sure what the solution is,” Johnson said.