Texans are encountering complications when voting this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has led both Republicans and Democrats to create new initiatives to encourage people to cast ballots. 

In Texas, online voter registration isn't permitted, which has created some problems for voter turnout in spring elections, according to KXAN. But in-person applications at county offices and signed mail-in applications are permitted. 

Both the state's Democrat and Republican parties are sending out voter registration cards. These cards can be signed by a resident seeking to register to vote, then sent to the Texas Secretary of State. 

Texas Democratic Party director Luke Warford told KXAN he's hopeful that getting more residents to register will flip the House of Representatives in the November election. 

“We believe that in the case of a pandemic you shouldn’t have to choose between exercising your constitutional right to register and vote and your safety,” Warford said.

The current Texas registration process is designed to prevent fraud from happening, Republican Party of Texas Chairman James Dickey told KXAN. 

“I think it’s wise as we look at other states where they have really no controls and no protection,” Dickey said. “Their rates of voting registration are not significantly better than ours. Because we have so much early voting, their rates of voter participation are not significantly better than ours either.”

In the 2016 election, 51% of eligible Texans voted, but the same average for the entire nation was 58%. Since that election, 1.1 million residents have registered to vote in the Lone Star State.