The United States District Court for the Western District of Texas has declined requests for discretionary relief to put Texas under federal supervision requiring preclearance for any voting rules changes. Texas was previously under similar federal preclearance requirements under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, but a 2013 U.S. Supreme Court decision held this section unconstitutional. The current request before the District Court to place Texas back under preclearance requirements was made under a similar provision which would for preclearance for up to 10 years upon a finding of intentional racial discrimination. In the order, the District Court noted that it had concerns over Texas’ conduct in redistricting and that intentional racial discrimination was found in unused 2011 maps, but denied the request as the U.S. Supreme Court in 2013 found that nothing remained to be remedied. For more information, please see the order here.
U.S. District Court Declines to Place Texas under Federal Voting Supervision
