Judge: Mobile Voting Can Continue

Highland Park ISD can follow through with its plans to set up mobile voting locations around the district for the bond election over the next two weeks, a judge ruled on Tuesday.

Dallas County District Court Judge Craig Smith denied a request for a temporary restraining order filed on Monday by University Park residents Beth Blankenship and William and Elizabeth Biesel, seeking an injunction by claiming that the use of mobile-voting stations violated state law and unlawfully influenced voters.

HPISD plans to set up the temporary stations on Oct. 21, 23, 29, and 30 at various campuses, including before and during football games at Highlander Stadium on Oct. 23 and Oct. 30.

“If Defendant is allowed to hold early voting at sites which are not the regular designated early voting polling places nor the regular county polling places in regular county election precincts in violation of the Texas Elections Code, the voter turnout and the representative voters of the HPISD will be skewed improperly and the vote on the Bond Election will be unlawfully influenced, thereby irreparably damaging Plaintiffs and all of the resident qualified electors and taxpayers of the HPISD for which there will be no adequate remedy at law,” the complaint reads.

The district argued it was trying to allow more opportunities to cast ballots during early voting for the Nov. 3 bond election. (By the way, you can read the details of the $361 million proposal here.) The only two traditional early voting locations within the district’s boundaries are at the HPISD administration building and at Our Redeemer Lutheran Church.

“We are pleased that the judge has allowed voting to continue as scheduled at these locations,” said HPISD superintendent Tom Trigg. “The court’s denial of the restraining order is consistent with advice received from the Secretary of State’s office through the Dallas County elections administrator advising the district that voting at temporary locations is proper. Our goal from the outset has been to provide more opportunities for people to have their voice heard in this election.”

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4 thoughts on “Judge: Mobile Voting Can Continue

  • October 21, 2015 at 10:57 am
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    Texas Democrats have an unfortunate history of disenfranchising disfavored groups. Following passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, federal courts ruled poll taxes, “literacy tests”, and similar tricks were illegal ruses to deny disfavored voters equal access to the democratic process.

    Due to this massive corruption Texas election management has existed under federal oversight for nearly half a century until being substantially removed by a 2013 Supreme Court ruling, “based on 40 year-old facts having no logical relationship to the present day”. Now Republicans are taking their turn at voter fraud with “Mobile Voting” sponsored by construction company interests.

    “Come vote and get into the football game for free,” most certainly fails the tests imposed by decades of federal jurisprudence and will probably return Texas to federal election control it worked so hard to shake.

    – Russell Fish

    Reply
  • October 21, 2015 at 12:45 pm
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    If you can’t get the voters to the ballot boxes, get the ballot boxes to the voters.

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    • October 21, 2015 at 2:00 pm
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      Come on Dan…folks appear to find the time to go to a football game but not have any time to travel to vote at at a nearby polling place? It just shows what priorities people have today.

      Our men and women in military uniform have dedicated their lives for such a privilege.

      Reply
  • October 21, 2015 at 9:00 pm
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    Mr. Fish –
    Last Wednesday at the middle school you assured as many of us as would listen that mobile voting was illegal, that the school board was responsible for this illegality and that a judge would most assuredly put a stop to it. Of course, you also assured us that ground will soon be broken on Section 8 housing within HPISD’s borders. I’m perplexed now – was there a second shooter on the grassy knoll? I am convinced that legalizing pot and making it more readily available is not a good idea.

    Reply

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