Galveston could have lost its sole Black commissioner.
Highlights:
On Friday, a Trump-appointed federal judge struck down an electoral map in Galveston, Texas, saying it violates the Voting Rights Act and amounts to “egregious” discrimination against Black and Latino voters.
Their map would have effectively erased representation of people of color at the highest levels of local government in a county that is 45 percent non-white.
If the new Galveston voting map had been upheld, the county would likely have lost its sole Black commissioner, Stephen Holmes.
Judge Brown ordered the county to redraw the map by October 20. Galveston County Judge Mark Henry, the county’s chief officer, says the county plans to appeal.
Galveston County Judge Mark Henry, the county’s chief officer, says the county plans to appeal. “The County followed redistricting law and did not engage in any racial discrimination,” he wrote in a statement. “We believe this will be vindicated by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. As County Judge, I have never lost a Voting Rights Act case on appeal.”
Well, yeah. The Fifth Circuit is basically a Conservative rubber stamp, so of course you'd never lose. However, you're not the only one that gets to appeal, and with SCOTUS upholding that Alabama did exactly the same thing you are doing, you might ultimately lose anyway.
In a functioning anything, any judge, lawyer, clerk, whatever shouldn't have any political affiliation and their religious beliefs wouldn't influence their law decisions.
I can't wait for the day the GOP tries to draw a map that completely discriminates against people and it turns out to make that happen, the districts are drawn like a swastika