Chris Hayes sounded off Tuesday evening as drama unfolded around the Democratic primary in Dallas, where the Texas Supreme Court blocked a polling hours extension.
“I mean, this idea that you’re going to segregate out the ballots based on who is on line at 7 o’clock — and I generally just wanted to take a step back because we can get in the weeds here,” Hayes said during MS NOW’s primary night coverage. “There is no reason to think … there’s any illegitimate or fake votes in the entire pool.”
He continued: “No one did anything wrong. There was confusion. So like, you should always default to what will allow the most amount of actual legitimate voters to cast votes in an election.”
Per Hayes, he felt this sentiment was true for either Republicans or Democrats and should be respected as a “general principle.”
“The thing that’s crazy about the world we live in, it is increasingly going to be the case that there are going to be places in which lower voter turn out would probably help Democrats than Republicans,” he said. “And it’s still the case that, as a matter of principle, you should intervene on behalf of the maximal amount of voters being able to vote.”
For those not following the situation in Texas, a rule change affecting primary voting sparked widespread confusion, prompting a judge to extend polling hours in Dallas County. The Texas Supreme Court later blocked that extension and ordered that ballots cast after 7 p.m. by voters who were not already in line be segregated.
Hayes was not the only person to sound off on the voting drama Tuesday, as Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) — who is running opposite Texas State Representative James Talarico for senate — suggested Republicans “targeted” Dallas County, given the Texas Supreme court is composed of nine Republican justices.
“If it comes in and I’m losing Dallas County then we know kind of where this thing is going, so that’s my news. We’re not going to have election results tonight, in my opinion, based upon what specifically is taking place in Dallas County. Unfortunately, this is what Republican like to do,” Crockett told her supporters Tuesday evening. “I want you to enjoy yourselves, but I won’t be back tonight because I have no idea of when we’re gonna get results and I fully anticipate it won’t be until tomorrow.”
Talarico was more optimistic with his own statement amid the drama, noting, “Tonight, our campaign is shocking the nation. We are still waiting for an official call, but we are confident in this movement we’ve built together.”
He continued: “Every vote must be counted. Every voice must be heard. The voter suppression in my home county and Congresswoman Crockett’s home county underscores the gravity of this moment. This movement is about whether the people will hold the power in this state and in this country.”
Watch MS NOW’s discussion on the drama above.
