A group of Tarrant County residents who sued over the county’s new commissioners court precinct map withdrew their lawsuit Monday.
It’s not clear from court filings why the group that filed the case, titled Jackson et. al. v. Tarrant County, decided to drop it. But it ends one of two lawsuits accusing Tarrant County of illegal racial gerrymandering.
KERA News has reached out to attorneys on both sides for comment.
In an emailed statement, Republican County Judge Tim O’Hare welcomed the news.
“The Commissioners Court’s action to redistrict was constitutional from the outset and remains so,” he said. “With today’s legal development, Tarrant County will continue to stand as the best place to live and run a business in America.”
Earlier this year, O’Hare and Tarrant County’s Republican commissioners pushed ahead with an unusual mid-decade redistricting effort, redrawing the precinct lines in their own favor. Opponents countered with two lawsuits, accusing the Republicans of creating a new right-leaning seat by shoving a disproportionate amount of Black and brown residents into one precinct.
In both cases, judges allowed the map to go into effect.
In October, federal appeals court judges evaluating the Jackson case acknowledged the new map disproportionately affects Black and Latino voters. But they decided the complainants failed to prove commissioners had anything but partisan intentions.
“An obvious explanation for the disparity exists: race and partisanship are highly correlated in Tarrant County, and districting decisions driven by partisanship will often have disparate racial effects,” their ruling read.
The second lawsuit over the county’s redistricting, brought by the League of Women Voters of Tarrant County and the League of United Latin American Citizens of Fort Worth, is still pending in a county district court, online records show.
The Jackson case’s withdrawal was “highly predictable,” Republican County Commissioner Matt Krause wrote in a Facebook post.
“This Democrat law firm wasted taxpayer funds by filing such an obviously meritless lawsuit. Maybe they should refund the taxpayers for having to defend it?” he wrote, adding a smiley face emoji.
A court battle over Texas’ new congressional maps, also redrawn to favor Republicans, is underway.
The U.S. Supreme Court temporarily restored the new map after a lower court ruled it was racially gerrymandered. It remains unclear which map will be in effect for next year’s midterm elections.
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Great Job Miranda Suarez | KERA & the Team @ Fort Worth Report for sharing this story.
