Voting Rights Act Should Protect Minority Americans Not Illegal Aliens

Some interesting articles surfaced recently in the Wall Street Journal ("Latino Activists Seize on Texas Ruling to Boost Voting Power") and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram ("Irving’s At-Large-Council Districts Violate Voting Rights Act, Judge Rules") among others about U.S. District Judge Jorge Solis' July 15th ruling that the city of Irving must allow "Hispanics to elect candidates of their own choosing." What if "their choosing" is a non-Hispanic candidate?

The judge found that the city’s at-large voting system limited Hispanics’ ability to be elected to local government positions. The city has 90 days to change the voting system, presumably into single districts along racial lines to guarantee that Hispanic candidates win election to the council. The city plans to appeal the ruling.

In 2007, Hispanic resident Manuel Benavidez filed the lawsuit claiming Irving’s at-large election system violated the Voting Rights Act because it does not divide the city into single districts. What he means is that Irving should divide the city into single districts along racial lines so he or other Hispanic candidates can run in heavily populated Latino districts and have a better chance of winning a council seat.

At-large systems allow candidates running for local positions to receive votes from across a geographic area rather than being limited to votes from a single district. Currently, all of Irving’s eight city council members are elected at-large.

Manuel Benavidez brought the lawsuit against the city after his two failed two campaigns to be elected to Irving’s school board in 2000 and 2006. What I find more interesting is that Benavidez's lawsuit alleged Irving’s at-large system violated the 1965 Voting Rights Act. The act was passed to stop decades of discriminatory practices, such as literacy tests, intimidation, and violence, southern states used to prevent black citizens from voting.

The Act clearly states:

SEC. 2. No voting qualification or prerequisite to voting, or standard, practice, or procedure shall be imposed or applied by any State or political subdivision to deny or abridge the right of any citizen of the United States to vote on account of race or color.

A 1982 amendment to Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act added that electoral processes must be equally accessible to minority voters but asserted proof of intentional discrimination is not required. I can’t find evidence that Mr. Benavidez or other Hispanics were denied the right to vote in Irving elections. Mr. Benavidez is suing the city of Irving because Hispanic candidates are having trouble winning local elections. This doesn’t necessarily mean their voting rights are being violated.

According to the article, Latinos make up 42% of Irving’s population but what percentage of these Latinos are legal citizens? City officials estimate 60% of Irving’s voting age Hispanic population are not US citizens but illegal immigrants. Over the past few years, through participation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Irving police have arrested about 1,600 illegal immigrants and turned them over to the federal government for deportation.

Irving’s fast-growing “illegal” Hispanic minority population should be granted the same rights as the city’s Hispanic citizens. Hispanic citizens in Irving already have the right to vote for a Hispanic, white, black, Asian, or any other “candidate of their choosing” in the at-large elections. What’s wrong about this judge’s ruling is that he is trying to manipulate an outcome on Irving’s city council based on what appears to be illegal population growth among Hispanics. In 1979, Irving residents voted against a charter amendment which would have ended at-large voting.

The goal of the Voting Rights Act was to prevent states from using discriminatory practices to stop blacks from exercising their right to vote. Mr. Benavidez sued because more white voters apparently are voting for candidates of their choosing than Hispanic voters. But is this a violation of the Voting Rights Act? Is it right to change Irving’s voting system to ensure a Hispanic gets elected to the city council or other local government positions?

If Hispanic citizens want more people like themselves elected to the Irving city council then activists’ organizations and residents need to get more aggressive about recruiting and supporting candidates. They should also engage in voter education efforts, including registering more Hispanic voters.

Section 5 of the Act, known as preclearance requires the Justice Department to monitor “covered” states or districts with a long history of discriminatory voting practices and approve any change to their voting practices, procedures or standards. Any change must demonstrate its intentions are not discriminatory. The section has been interpreted by many as a tool to redraw congressional districts along racial lines to increase minority representation.

While the at-large system has been challenged in courts for many years, it seems Judge Solis is engaging in some judicial activism. One could argue that after the passage of the Civil Rights Act and subsequent Voting Rights Act, racial gerrymandering was needed in local and congressional districts to help bring about greater equality between blacks and whites.

But is racial gerrymandering needed today? In many urban cities across the country, some whites would argue their voting rights are being violated because they are under-represented on city councils and local boards, etc. What are the chances of a white candidate getting elected mayor in a city like Detroit, D.C. or Richmond, Virginia? Whites could argue blacks completely control the election process in these cities. Is that fair?

One could argue that at-large elections make all candidates work harder for votes. States and municipalities should not be allowed to make changes to election systems which discriminate against minorities. Likewise, congressional redistricting efforts shouldn’t be aimed at benefiting one party or race of people while diminishing another. Yes, the Voting Rights Act is still needed and should be used to protect American voters against deliberate acts by states, cities and counties to suppress or weaken minority voting rights. But the law should not be used as a back door means to extend voting rights to illegal immigrants, no matter who they are. Hispanic residents like any other ethnic group in this country “deserve a voice in policy making” when they can be counted as legal citizens.