US Attorney Reitz Threatens to 'Hunt Down' Texas Voters as Early Voting Begins

U.S. Attorney Aaron Reitz, appointed in July 2026, posted a video Oct. 19, the first day of Texas early voting, warning: "If you violate federal election law, I will hunt you down and prosecute you." He said his office would help monitor "key" polling places and coordinate with the FBI, DHS and DOJ's Civil Rights Division to "surge legal resources," and told local election officials he was "here to make sure they do their job."

Common Cause Texas policy director Emily Eby French called the message intimidating toward officials already working through a backlog of voter registrations after a state system glitch, and said "surge" evokes ICE enforcement. Reitz did not respond; Sen. Alex Padilla has separately pressed him over the remarks.