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In response to Texas Secretary of State John B. Scott's announcement that Harris County's votes could be delayed, the county's elections administrator, Isabel Longoria, asserted that her office "prioritizes accuracy over speed."
Scott made the announcement when the polls closed last night, according to Community Impact Newspaper.
Longoria said there were no delays and it was just another normal election night.
She took issue with the state's rule that votes must be counted within 24 hours, Houston CBS affiliate KHOU reported.
“Certain parties perceived perhaps that meant the 24-hour rule, that we had to count everything in Harris County right now and have it all done within 24 hours,” Longoria told the publication. "That’s never been the case. We’re a big county. We know we’re going to get all those boxes back within the next 24 hours.”
Violation of the 24-hour rule is a Class B misdemeanor.
Longoria said the county's votes would continue beyond today's deadline.
Community Impact Newspaper reported that Harris County election officials, representatives from both political parties and the county attorney's office held a conference call with Scott and his office following the announcement.
Longoria said the Republicans and the Democrats will request a court order regarding the count deadline, the publication reported.
The secretary of state's office said in a statement released to the media that it'll help counties in the state, including Harris County, with their election issues.
“Our office stands ready to assist Harris County election officials, and all county election officials throughout the state, in complying with Texas Election Code requirements for accurately tabulating and reporting primary election results,” Scott said in the release. “We want to ensure that all Texans who have cast a ballot in this year's primary elections can have confidence in the accuracy of results."