The Texas Senate voted 21-10 today to approve heftier penalties for mail-in ballot fraud.
According to the Texas Tribune, the Senate voted mainly on party lines to pass the bill. Several Democrats had initially stated a willingness to back the bill, but later voted against the measure due to a provision regarding political discussions between family members "in the presence of" a mail-in ballot.
Governor Greg Abbott has called a "crackdown" on mail-in ballot fraud a priority for the special session, following the sequestration of 700 suspicious mail-in ballots in Dallas' city council races.
Texas law currently allows those who are 65 years or older or those who will be out of the district during the entire voting period to vote by mail.
The bill will now head to the House of Representatives.
