09/08/2026
I want to address this statement directly and factually because allegations concerning the legality of an HOA election should be supported by the applicable law.
First, there is an important distinction between protecting personally identifiable information (PII) and claiming that Texas law requires an HOA election ballot to contain no information identifying the member casting it.
At this time, I am not aware of any provision of the Texas Property Code that requires a property owners' association to provide a completely anonymous or PII-free voting method for an ordinary HOA election. If anyone believes such a requirement exists, I respectfully ask that the specific statute or governing-document provision be identified so that it can be reviewed.
Texas Property Code Chapter 209 specifically regulates voting by property owners' associations.
Texas Property Code §209.0058 addresses the tabulation and solicitation of votes. Importantly, Texas law recognizes ballots that identify the person casting the vote and separately permits an association to establish procedures for voting by secret ballot.
Section 209.0058(d) provides that an association **“may adopt rules to allow voting by secret ballot.”**
The use of the word “may” is significant. The statute authorizes an association to establish a secret-ballot procedure; it does not state that every HOA election must be conducted anonymously or that identifying information is prohibited from being associated with the voting process.
Furthermore, when an association does use secret ballots, §209.0058(d) requires reasonable measures to ensure that a member cannot cast more votes than the member is entitled to cast and that every eligible vote is counted.
That means there must still be a mechanism for determining voter eligibility and preventing duplicate or unauthorized voting. A secret ballot does not necessarily mean an unverifiable ballot. A properly designed system can verify **who voted** while keeping that information separate from **how the member voted**.
Protecting members' personal information is important, and the Association should appropriately safeguard information collected during an election. However, that is a separate issue from asserting that the presence or collection of identifying information automatically makes an HOA ballot unlawful.
Regarding the statement that the Texas Attorney General will be “calling about this election,” LGHOA will cooperate with any lawful inquiry from any governmental agency and will provide the appropriate records and explanation of the procedures used.
It should also be noted that the Texas Attorney General's own published guidance states that its Charitable Trusts Division does **not generally investigate homeowners' associations, nonprofit membership benefit corporations, contested elections, or disagreements between directors and members concerning policies and procedures.**
If a governmental agency, court, or other entity with appropriate authority determines that LGHOA should modify an election procedure, the Association will address that determination appropriately.
Until then, allegations that the election violates Texas law should identify the actual law allegedly violated.
If someone believes that requiring identifying information on the ballot violates a particular provision of the Texas Property Code, LGHOA's Bylaws, the applicable Deed Restrictions, or another applicable law, please provide the exact citation.
We are willing to review legitimate concerns and correct an issue when the law requires it. However, disagreement over how an election should be conducted is not, by itself, proof that the election is unlawful.
Our goal is, and will remain, to conduct the election fairly, verify that ballots are cast by eligible members, prevent duplicate voting, accurately count the votes, maintain appropriate election records, and comply with Texas law and LGHOA's governing documents.
