“We found that a large number of voters – particularly Democrats, women, and persons over 65 – were reluctant to vote in person at a polling location on or before Election Day,” said Rice political scientist Bob Stein.

Under Texas state law, voters qualify for mail-in ballots if they are 65 years or older, have a disability or illness, will be out of the county, or are in jail.

On Wednesday, the Texas Supreme Court heard oral argument about whether expanding mail-in balloting during the COVID-19 pandemic is legal, as many counties in the state argue that it is.

A day earlier, a federal court granted a preliminary injunction that would allow all registered voters to apply to vote by mail, finding that the state’s existing rules violate the Equal Protection Clause.

“In my opinion, based on all those years of experience, by far the easiest way to commit fraud is vote by mail,” Mills said.