HOUSTON — A choose on Tuesday known as unconstitutional a brand new legislation handed by the GOP-led Texas Legislature that can dictate how elections are run within the state’s most populous county, which is a Democratic stronghold and residential to Houston.
The legislation, which might abolish a place that oversees elections in Harris County, was quickly blocked by state District Judge Karin Crump in Austin after county officers filed a lawsuit earlier this month.
But the choose’s order, issued Monday, was short-lived. It was placed on maintain on Tuesday after the Texas Attorney General’s Office filed a discover that it’ll enchantment to the Texas Supreme Court.
The new legislation, set to take impact Sept. 1, was pushed by means of by Republican lawmakers who accused Harris County officers of mismanaging latest elections. Democrats accused Republicans of singling out the county as a result of, like different massive city areas across the state, it has more and more voted Democratic.
In an announcement, the Texas Attorney General’s Office stated the brand new legislation was handed “to ensure that elections in the state’s largest counties are properly managed by individuals who are accountable to the voters, not by unaccountable bureaucrats.”
But in her orders within the lawsuit, Crump stated the brand new legislation solely applies to Texas counties with a inhabitants of three.5 million residents. Harris County, with 4.7 million residents, is the one Texas county with that enormous of a inhabitants. According to the legislation’s language, no different county could be topic to the legislation even when their inhabitants have been to ever surpass 3.5 million residents, Crump wrote.
The Texas Constitution prevents the Legislature from passing any legal guidelines that aren’t uniform all through the state and solely goal a particular location, Crump wrote.
The new legislation is “unreasonable, arbitrary, and simply a means of singling out one county,” Crump wrote.
“We aren’t surprised by (Monday’s) injunction. Nonetheless, we are confident this case will go to the Texas Supreme Court and they will rule that (the new law) is constitutional,” stated Cindy Siegel, head of the Harris County GOP.
Harris County officers stated they deliberate to ask the Texas Supreme Court to additionally quickly block the brand new legislation whereas their lawsuit is litigated.
“At the end of the day, we know that this is not about making elections better … It’s about undermining confidence in our elections,” stated Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee, a Democrat.
The new legislation stemmed from issues throughout November’s elections in Harris County. Local officers have acknowledged issues that included paper poll shortages and delayed ballot openings.
Almost two dozen Republican candidates have filed lawsuits, alleging their losses in Harris County throughout final 12 months’s election have been due partially to the varied issues in addition to to illegally solid votes. A ruling is anticipated within the subsequent few weeks in one of many lawsuits, the primary to go to trial earlier this month.
There has been no proof that the problems affected the outcomes.
The elections have been run by Clifford Tatum, Harris County’s elections administrator, a place created by the county in 2020.
The new legislation would return elections oversight within the county to the tax assessor and county clerk, that are each elected workplaces at the moment held by Democrats.
“When the Texas GOP can’t win a race, they get very Trumpy: either change rules, change the referee or cry in their spilt milk,” stated Harris County Commissioner Adrian Garcia, a Democrat.
Harris County officers have stated the brand new legislation wouldn’t give them sufficient time to arrange for November’s mayoral election in Houston. It was a priority echoed by Crump.
“Without this order, the state … will likely disrupt the upcoming election and cause havoc,” Crump wrote.
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