Tag Archives: redistricting

Are we ever going to get a redistricting ruling?

Posted on October 19, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From the Texas Election Law Blog: As Rick Hasen has reported, [Wednesday] the plaintiffs in the 2011 redistricting lawsuit asked the three-judge panel for the Western District of Texas, San Antonio Division to enjoin the State of Texas from using … Continue reading →

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Neugebauer to step down in CD19

Posted on September 23, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

At least one Congressional seat will have a new person sitting in it next year. U.S. Rep. Randy Neugebauer, R-Lubbock, announced Thursday that he would not seek re-election in 2016. Neugebauer, who has represented his West Texas district in Congress … Continue reading →

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$8 million and counting for voter ID litigation

Posted on September 20, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Ka-ching. Republicans used their majority in 2011 to muscle through the Legislature a controversial voter ID law and new redistricting maps — and Texas taxpayers haven’t stopped picking up the bill for the state to defend those measures in courts … Continue reading →

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State gets the bill for fighting same sex marriage

Posted on September 6, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Please pay promptly. The attorneys for same-sex couples who successfully challenged Texas’ gay marriage ban in federal court are seeking nearly three-quarters of a million dollars in fees and costs from the state. In a 27-page motion filed Friday, attorneys … Continue reading →

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State ordered to pay fees in redistricting litigation

Posted on August 21, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

They don’t seem to be interested in doing that, however. In a scolding tone, a federal appeals court panel in Washington, D.C., ordered the state of Texas on Tuesday to pay more than $1 million in attorneys’ fees in a … Continue reading →

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Pasadena City Council member Cody Ray Wheeler announces for HD144

Posted on August 1, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: I am excited to announce that I have decided to seek the Democratic nomination for State Representative District 144. As a Pasadena City Councilmember, I have worked hard to ensure that under-served communities have a voice in … Continue reading →

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Where are the ladies?

Posted on July 13, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Not in Congress, where only three of the 36 members Texas sends to the House are of the female persuasion. Week after week at the U.S. Capitol, the Republican congressional delegation from Texas gathers for a ritual Thursday lunch. And … Continue reading →

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Three legislators announce their departure

Posted on June 2, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The first to say goodbye is Rep. Sylvester Turner. Representative Sylvester Turner fought back tears today as the House gave him a bipartisan farewell as he concluded a 26-year legislative career to run for Houston mayor. “My time is up. … Continue reading →

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SCOTUS to hear Texas “one person one vote” challenge

Posted on May 27, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Gird your loins. When drawing voting districts, should lawmakers seek to make each district have roughly the same number of people, or the same number of people eligible to vote? The Supreme Court is going to answer that question, the … Continue reading →

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House passes AG butt-in bill

Posted on May 23, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Boo. The state attorney general is on the verge of having new powers to influence cases on school finance and legislative redistricting, as part of the GOP’s latest efforts to diminish Democratic challenges to their policies. The House on Monday … Continue reading →

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Another redistricting update

Posted on May 18, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Once again from Russ Tidwell, writing at Letters from Texas. The three judge federal panel in San Antonio is nearing a final decision on redistricting litigation for the Texas House and congressional delegation. As previously discussed here, multiple weeks of … Continue reading →

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HISD mostly declines to rezone its schools

Posted on May 17, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Lots of noise, not nearly as much action. A divided Houston school board on Thursday rejected most of the rezoning proposals designed to reduce class sizes after dozens of parents expressed concerns about families having to send their children to … Continue reading →

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Van de Putte and Taylor in SA Mayor runoff

Posted on May 10, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go. Former state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte is set to face San Antonio Mayor Ivy Taylor in a runoff for the city’s top job. With 95 percent of all precincts reporting late Saturday, Van de Putte led … Continue reading →

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Getting nasty in Pasadena

Posted on May 7, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Pasadena Mayor Johnny Isbell is not on the ballot this year, but he’s definitely involved in the Council elections. A political action committee (PAC) with ties to Pasadena Mayor Johnny Isbell contributed more than $20,000 to three candidates in the … Continue reading →

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SCOTUS rejects North Carolina redistricting

Posted on April 26, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Of interest. On Monday, the Supreme Court vacated a ruling from North Carolina’s highest court that had upheld Republican-drawn maps of the state’s congressional and legislative districts. While we don’t yet know what the final outcome will be, the court’s … Continue reading →

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HISD postpones redrawing school boundaries

Posted on March 16, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

This stuff is hard, y’all. The school board [had planned] to vote Thursday on the district’s biggest rezoning plan in recent years, involving more than two dozen campuses. The proposal mostly would redraw attendance boundaries to shift homes from more … Continue reading →

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Redistricting update

Posted on February 6, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From Russ Tidwell, writing at Letters from Texas: There is well-established case law around redistricting that calls for creating a new minority opportunity district anytime a compact majority of a single minority group can be established (i.e., majority Black or … Continue reading →

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HISD considers a different kind of redistricting

Posted on January 28, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

It would likely be just as contentious as the usual kind. Houston school officials may rezone students from roughly two dozen elementary schools over the next few years in an effort to meet the state’s class size limits. District officials … Continue reading →

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RIP, two-thirds rule

Posted on January 22, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Not a surprise. With a new lieutenant governor installed for the first time in over a decade Wednesday — and over the cries of Democrats — the Texas Senate voted to break from an almost 70-year tradition intended to encourage … Continue reading →

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Don’t forget about Pasadena

Posted on January 5, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

There’s still a lawsuit in the works regarding their 2013 redistricting referendum that switched their Council from an eight-member all-district makeup to six districts and two At large seats, all at the behest of Mayor Johnny Isbell. Pasadena is preparing … Continue reading →

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Re-redistricting HISD

Posted on December 3, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Well, this would be different. The Houston school board would grow from nine elected trustees to 17 under a bill filed by state Rep. Senfronia Thompson, who said she wants to give residents of the former North Forest school district … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed over Pasadena Council districts

Posted on November 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Good. For 41 years, Alberto Patiño has lived in Pasadena and seen a lot of changes there. Now Hispanics like him make up more than 60 percent of residents and about 40 percent of eligible voters. Patiño wants that reflected … Continue reading →

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The two Dallas districts to watch

Posted on November 2, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

There’s HD105: Hispanics make up 41 percent of Irving’s population — up from 31 percent in 2000 and 16 percent in 1990, when the white population topped 71 percent, according to figures from 2010, the latest available. White residents make … Continue reading →

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The larger issue on voter ID

Posted on October 29, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The Trib reminds us that there are bigger questions that remain to be answered in the voter ID litigation. The litigation on the state’s voting district maps for legislative and congressional elections is still underway, and the treatment of minority … Continue reading →

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On Gene Green and representing Latino districts

Posted on September 16, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve been meaning to blog about this story about Rep. Gene Green and CD29 and how the Houston area has never sent a Latino to Congress, but I kept getting stuck and I finally decided I was overthinking it. Two … Continue reading →

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HISD approves its redistricting plan

Posted on September 16, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, HISD now includes all of the former North Forest ISD, and with that new territory came the need to reapportion its Trustee districts. They completed that task last week with a minimum of fuss. The Houston school … Continue reading →

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Second phase of redistricting trial over

Posted on September 2, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Much like the first phase, with some insults for one of the state’s key players thrown in for effect. Lawyers with the U.S. Justice Department and minority groups said in closing arguments in federal court Tuesday that state lawmakers illegally … Continue reading →

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On redistricting and race

Posted on August 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Phase Two of the redistricting trial is underway, and if it sounds an awful lot like Phase One to you, you would be right. Texas’ Republican-controlled Legislature didn’t discriminate against minorities by drawing election maps in 2011 that voting-rights activists … Continue reading →

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Redistricting II: Congressional Boogaloo

Posted on August 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Phase Two of the redistricting lawsuit trial begins today, in which the 2011 Congressional maps go under the microscope. That’s as good a time as any for the mandatory How Much All This Redistricting Litigation Is Costing Us story. Texans … Continue reading →

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First phase of redistricting trial ends

Posted on August 1, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Not much of interest must have happened, because news reports have been sparse, to say the least. The first phase of the federal trial examining claims that state lawmakers discriminated against African-American and Hispanic voters when redrawing Texas House districts … Continue reading →

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What else is at stake in the redistricting trial

Posted on July 15, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s about more than just the maps. Efforts by the Obama administration to wring protections out of a weakened Voting Rights Act begin Monday in Texas over allegations that Republicans intentionally discriminated against minorities when drawing new election maps. A … Continue reading →

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Next phases of redistricting lawsuit scheduled

Posted on July 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Part One takes place next week. The trial over 2011 House district boundaries begins July 14 in U.S. District Court, where a hearing Tuesday shed light on how the case could unfold. The proceeding are expected to last at least … Continue reading →

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HISD redistricting underway

Posted on July 2, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, the Houston Independent School District now includes all of the former North Forest ISD. The addition of all that new territory, and especially all those new voters, means that the existing HISD Trustee districts will have to … Continue reading →

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A Greg Abbott threefer

Posted on June 22, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Trail Blazers: Dallas appeals court rules fired prosecutor can pursue whistleblowing case against Greg Abbott’s office In May 2009, a former assistant attorney general in Greg Abbott’s office sued the Office of the Attorney General in Dallas County court, claiming … Continue reading →

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