The Texas Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that Harris County, one of the largest in the country, cannot mail out applications for absentee ballots to all of its 2.4 million registered voters. Wednesday’s ruling is the latest blow for Democrats and voting rights groups who have pushed for Texas to expand vote-by-mail access amid the coronavirus pandemic. Republicans have blocked their efforts in favor of stricter measures that they argue ensure the integrity of the electoral process. The Ruling said “We hold that the Election Code does not authorize an early-voting clerk to send an application to vote by mail to a voter who has not requested one and that a clerk’s doing so results in irreparable injury to the State.”