Collin County officials approved the purchase of equipment needed to implement a hand-marked balloting system starting with the November 2025 election.
Earlier this month, Collin County Commissioners Court voted to pursue switching to hand-marked ballots instead of using ballot marking devices, although the devices will continue to be available at each polling place for voters with disabilities.
At that meeting, commissioners directed Collin County Elections Administrator Kaleb Breaux to present more details on June 23, including procurement agreements for items needed to successfully implement the switch by November.
During Monday’s meeting, commissioners unanimously approved Breaux’s proposed purchase of approximately $2 million in equipment and services required to print ballots on demand at the polls, which will then be hand-marked by voters.
Commissioners also approved an application for a $52,000 election security grant from the Texas Secretary of State’s Office to help offset the cost of the ballot printers. The grant money comes from federal Help America Vote Act funds designated for helping county election offices comply with various security measures.
Collin County’s switch to hand-marked ballots was prompted both by citizens concerned about election integrity and by a March 25 executive order issued by President Donald Trump for “Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections.”
The order states that within 180 days, “voting systems should not use a ballot in which a vote is contained within a barcode or quick-response code in the vote counting process except where necessary to accommodate individuals with disabilities.”
That set a September 21 deadline for county officials to replace the current ES&S (Election Systems & Software) ballot marking devices.
With the BMDs, voters make their selections on a touch screen. The device then prints the names of voters’ selected candidates on a paper ballot next to barcodes representing the selections. The barcodes, not the names, are used to tally the votes.
Proponents of hand-marked ballots say the BMDs prevent voters from verifying that the names they selected will be the choices read by the ballot scanners.
With hand-marked ballots, scanners will read the marks voters make next to pre-printed candidates’ names—similar to the way mail-in ballots are marked and tallied.
The new system will print ballots on demand for each voter as they check in at the polls. Voters will mark the ballot using an ink pen, then insert their completed ballot into a scanner that deposits the tallied paper ballot into a secured box.
Opponents of the switch argued in court Monday that there is nothing wrong with the current system, and cautioned that reverting to hand-marked ballots could result in longer wait times at the polls and increase the risk of human errors such as over-voting (marking multiple candidates in a race, which invalidates that vote).
Former Collin County League of Women Voters President Liz Holland told commissioners that the current voting system is safe and secure, and that routine “rigorous testing” confirms the results are reliable and accurate.
Holland also stated that there is currently no “mandate” by the secretary of state to stop using barcoded ballots.
Collin County Administrator Yoon Kim told commissioners he spoke with Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson, who confirmed that barcodes are not allowed.
Hand-marking proponent Debbie Lindstrom, elections director for grassroots advocacy group Citizens Defending Freedom, noted that the secretary of state’s Director of Elections Christina Adkins discussed the ES&S system’s noncompliance with the executive order during an official webinar earlier this month.
“Her message to county officials across Texas was clear: it’s time to be proactive,” said Lindstrom. “This isn’t about politics. It’s about following state guidance and smart planning. Our state’s top election official is encouraging proactive action.”
Collin County resident John Montes also spoke in favor of switching to hand-marked ballots, citing an election security report published by the National Academy of Sciences in 2018 that recommended all elections be conducted using human-readable paper ballots.
Following public comments, commissioners heard from the elections administrator.
“I feel like we have a pretty good plan in place,” he said.
Breaux told commissioners he had worked with several county departments, received guidance from the secretary of state’s office, and consulted with Elections Administrator Frank Phillips in neighboring Denton County, which uses Hart InterCivic’s hand-marked ballot-on-demand system.
“They do it with great success and accuracy, so I have no doubt that we’ll be able to implement that here as well,” said Breaux.
He noted that Collin County’s current ballot scanners, which are not being replaced, can be programmed to detect anomalies such as over-votes and alert the voter so they can have a chance to fix errors before their ballot is tallied.
Breaux emphasized the “time crunch” for commissioners to approve the purchases, stating that an expected 60- to 90-day window for delivery from vendors “puts us in mid-September for November implementation.”
The approved purchases include 300 barcode scanners ($72,195), 300 laptops ($517,500), 350 printers ($271,250), 1,000 toner cartridges ($62,980), 500 drum units ($71,815), 1,800 voting booths ($312,520), and 200 printer carts ($453,500), as well as ballot-on-demand items added to the county’s maintenance renewal contract with ES&S ($357,200).
While waiting for the equipment to arrive, Breaux said his office is prepared to start training poll workers, revamping forms, and educating voters about the new system.
Despite the tight implementation window, Breaux told commissioners he has “high confidence” that his team can serve Collin County voters “with excellence” in the November election.
Williamson County officials also voted this week to switch to hand-marked balloting in November.
