ATLANTA — Today, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) filed a complaint challenging the use of an at-large voting system that has weakened Black voting power in elections for the Board of Commissioners in Houston County, Georgia.
Houston County has a large and growing Black community centered around the city of Warner Robins. However, Black residents have struggled to elect candidates to the county’s governing authority, the Board of Commissioners. While 32% of the county’s population is Black, none of the five current members of the Board of Commissioners were the preferred candidate of Black voters in a contested election.
“At-large voting systems, like the one used to elect county commissioners in Houston County, have long been a tool to deny Black voters a voice in government.” said Ajay Saini, senior staff attorney, SPLC. “Our clients in this case have struggled against a system that has unfairly denied them an opportunity to participate in the political process. The Voting Rights Act, passed 60 years ago this year, was enacted to protect communities from just this type of discrimination. At the SPLC, we remain committed to enforcing the promise of the Voting Rights Act and vindicating the rights of voters.
The SPLC filed this lawsuit on behalf of several Black residents of Houston County who have struggled against this unfair election method. Since 1980, only one Black candidate has won an election to serve on the Board of Commissioners. The county has a long history of racial discrimination impacting the Black community. The at-large system for electing Commissioners dilutes the voting strength of Black residents – limiting their ability to equally participate in the political process, which is a violation of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, 52 U.S.C. § 10301.
“Black residents have deep and enduring ties to Houston County,” said Jacqueline Rozier, a longtime Houston County resident who is a plaintiff in the lawsuit filed today. “We have worked hard alongside our neighbors to build the county into what it is today. Yet, we don’t have a voice in how the county is governed. I hope that, with today’s lawsuit, we can change that and right a fundamental unfairness in our government.”
Click here to read the complaint.
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About the Southern Poverty Law Center
The Southern Poverty Law Center is a catalyst for racial justice in the South and beyond, working in partnership with communities to dismantle white supremacy, strengthen intersectional movements and advance the human rights of all people. For more information, visit www.splcenter.org.