By JEFF CARLTON
Associated Press Writer

DALLAS (AP) — The state attorney general is using a 2003 law about mail-in ballots to intimidate elderly, disabled and minority voters who typically favor Democrats, according to a civil lawsuit filed Thursday by the Texas Democratic Party.

The lawsuit aims to overturn parts of the Texas Election Code that criminalize people who help voters with their mail-in ballots.

The defendants are Secretary of State Roger Williams and Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, a pair of Republicans accused by Democrats of selectively targeting blacks, Hispanics and old people through his voter fraud task force.

The statutes in question make it illegal for anyone other than voters to possess their own mail-in ballots. That prevents political parties and community activists from helping voters mail their ballots, a “common practice by individuals, political parties and other organizations ... to maximize voter turnout,” the lawsuit reads.

Abbott’s voter fraud task force has 13 open cases, all involving Democrats, according to the Texas Democratic Party. Twelve of the 13 defendants are black or Hispanic, and in eight of those cases Abbott prosecuted someone for mailing or delivering someone else’s sealed ballot, Democrats said.

“A lot of the cases we are looking at, the ballots have not been tampered with and people have not coerced other people into voting,” said Amber Moon, a Texas Democratic Party spokeswoman. “These are community activists trying to help their friends and neighbors vote.”

Besides the state Democratic Party, the other plaintiffs are six individuals: five political activists and a 78-year-old wheelchair-bound woman in Fort Worth who needs help voting, including the actual mailing of her ballot, according to the lawsuit.

Texas Solicitor General Ted Cruz, the state’s chief appellate lawyer, said the lawsuit has no basis.

“The plaintiffs are a combination of political operatives and individual criminals who have already pleaded guilty to voter fraud,” Cruz said in a statement issued by Abbott’s office. “We will vigorously defend this baseless lawsuit to ensure that admitted criminals like the plaintiffs will not be able to defraud Texas voters and undermine the integrity of Texas elections.”

A spokesman for Williams said the secretary of state will continue to forward allegations of voter fraud to the attorney general.

“Secretary Williams feels it is important that the state takes a tough stance on voter fraud,” spokesman Scott Haywood said.

In a statement, Texas Democratic Party Chairman Boyd Richie said Abbott is trying “to create a backdrop of fear and intimidation in certain Texas communities.”

“The Texas Democratic Party adamantly opposes real voter fraud, but it is shameful for Greg Abbott to exploit the law to target minority and senior voters,” Richie said.