A federal three-judge panel in El Paso ruled on February 1 that the newly redrawn Texas State Senate District 10 in Tarrant County, “SD10,” can be used in the upcoming March primary.
Tarrant County Commissioner Roy Charles Brooks and other Plaintiffs in the lawsuit argued that the redrawn district intentionally diluted the voting power of citizens of color. They asked for a preliminary injunction to block the redrawn SD10 from being used in elections until a final verdict is reached.
United States District Judge David C. Guaderrama concluded the ruling with this exactitude: “After careful consideration of the parties’ arguments and four days of testimony and evidentiary submissions, and for reasons to be stated in a forthcoming opinion, the Court finds that the Brooks Plaintiffs have not satisfied the requirements necessary to obtain a preliminary injunction. IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the Brooks Plaintiffs’ “Motion for a Preliminary Injunction as to Senate District 10” (ECF No. 39) is DENIED.”
The Plaintiffs, which include current SD10 State Senator Beverly Powell and six citizens of Tarrant County, will likely appeal the decision. There have been multiple lawsuits filed against several newly redrawn districts. However, the lawsuit from Senator Powell is the only one that asked for a preliminary injunction.
As of now, the case for the lawsuit is scheduled for resumption in September. The court will hear it together with all the other legal challenges against the latest round of redistricting.
Some local elected leaders took the stand in the trial held last week on behalf of the Plaintiffs.
Commissioner Brooks, the Primary Plaintiff in the case, told the court that the new SD10 configuration “would keep African American and Hispanic voters from ever being able to elect their candidate of choice.”
Retiring State Senator Kel Seliger also took part in the trial. As previously reported by The Dallas Express, Senator Seliger believed his party did violate federal voting laws with the new configuration of SD10.
Lawyers for the state argued that race was not a factor in the redrawing of SD10, but partisanship was. Lawmakers can consider party affiliation during redistricting but cannot discriminate based on race. Lawyers further argued that the Plaintiffs had no way to prove that race was a motivating factor in redistricting.
Chief Map-Drawer for the State of Texas Joan Huffman has maintained throughout hearings that legislators drew the maps “race-blind.”
Another argument the State of Texas made was that it was too close to election day to make injunctions. In-person early voting begins on February 14, with election day set for March 1.
The panel of judges considered this fact in their ruling. Saying an injunction now would “fly in the face” of preceding advisement from the Supreme Court that lower courts should not make changes “on the eve of an election.”
The three-judge panel consisted of Guaderrama (a President Obama appointee), Jerry E. Smith (a President Reagan appointee), and Jeffrey V. Brown (a President Trump appointee).
