Texas residency laws are pretty lenient. You can establish residency by simply staying overnight somewhere several times a year and receiving mail. Even if professional or personal business takes a person away from their house or apartment for an extended period of time, they can maintain the address as their residence by demonstrating the intent to return. Even under these liberal conditions of residency, Republican State Representative Frank Corte (HD 122, San Antonio) appears to have gone too far and is using a phony address to vote and hold public office. In fact, Corte has signed sworn affidavits on file with the State of Texas affirming that he lived on the vacant lot and appears to have a driver’s license with the same address.
No House… or apartment, or condo, or cardboard box
Corte lists his residence on official documents as 4203 Honeycomb, San Antonio, Texas. But, if you go to this address, you’ll find the vacant lot pictured on this page. Don’t believe it? Go to Google Maps and select street view. You will see the same vacant lot that has remained empty for at least two years.
Bexar County records from 2006 show that the vacant lot once held a house that was demolished or moved. (Bexar County Residential Building Application,10/16/2006) Even though the lot is vacant with no habitable structure of any type, Frank Corte has repeatedly sworn on official documents that he resides at this address.
Will Greg Abbott Investigate? Prosecute?
It is not a stretch to say that Greg Abbott has investigated and indicted individuals for less clear and more minor violations of Texas voting laws. As the Lone Star Project first reported, and other news outlets confirmed, Abbott’s controversial Voter Fraud Task Force relied upon a vague and narrow Texas election statute to prosecute senior citizen Democrats who were simply helping other seniors vote by mail.
4203 Honeycomb, San Antonio, TX, is a vacant lot and clearly not the current residence of Frank Corte. The vacant lot has sat empty for over a year, raising serious questions about whether Frank Corte ever intends to live at this address.
Frank Corte has voted multiple times using a vacant lot as his address. He has also sworn on candidate filing forms and Texas Ethics Commission reports that the vacant lot is his official residence.
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has aggressively moved to investigate and prosecute Democrats for less obvious and less serious voting irregularities. Abbott should immediately open an investigation of Frank Corte.
Questions Frank Corte Should Answer for Voters in District 122
- Do you currently live in House District 122?
- Do you currently claim a homestead exemption in Texas? If so, where?
- Why have you failed to update your registration and/or driver’s license address as required by State law?
- Are you aware that under Texas law voting illegally could subject you to felony prosecution?
Photos of 4203 Honeycomb, San Antonio, Texas
