The State Bar of Texas elections for president-elect will move 100% online this year because of the impact that the COVID-19 is having on a New York-based election vendor.

In an emergency order issued late Sunday night, the Texas Supreme Court ordered the president-elect races for the Texas Bar and the Texas Young Lawyers Association to be conducted online only by electronic vote, not paper ballot. The high court also extended the voting period through May 29 at 5 p.m.

The bar has contracted with the New York voting vendor for many years to mail out paper ballots and email electronic ballots, accept completed ballots from lawyers, filter out any double-votes, and tabulate and certify the vote, said Texas Bar President Randy Sorrels.

The problem is that the vendor is headquartered in New York, where a lockdown order has impacted its staff. No one knows if the staff will be back at work by the time that the Texas Bar would be relying on the company to count the paper ballots, explained Sorrels.

The bar didn't want to take a chance, and it decided to do away with paper ballots, and move to online-only voting, he said.

Last year, 29% of Texas attorneys voted by paper ballot, he said. Some bar officials feel that voter turnout may increase, because lawyers have more time to read emails and take the time to complete an electronic ballot. Others fear that voter turnout will decrease by removing the paper-ballot option.

Sorrels said he can't make a prediction.

"During these times I've learned my expectations do not really matter about what's going to happen in the world," he explained. "What's going on is shocking to me."

But he added that the bar will do everything it can to inform attorneys about the switch to an online election.

He said, "We're going to publicize it as many ways as we can, including in the bar journal, including emails—any way we can get the word out."