KATY, Texas — A civil rights group is calling on Katy Independent School District to reopen an early voting location that’s located near large populations of Black and Latino voters.
The Legal Defense Fund says the closure of the Morton Ranch High School early voting polling location will impact voting access for Black and Latino communities just ahead of the May 6 election for trustees of Katy ISD.
Early voting for the 2023 Katy ISD Board Election begins Monday, April 24, but before the start of early voting, the Legal Defense Fund is asking Katy ISD to reopen the Morton Ranch High School early voting polling location.
“There’s not enough people standing up, people like me and like you standing up saying that we’re not being treated fairly,” Eric Torres, a former Katy ISD student and voter said.
“It is a neighborhood that is predominantly African American and Hispanic and so we’re deeply concerned that the closure of this early voting polling site may impact disenfranchisement of minority voters,” Antonio Ingram with the NAACP Legal Defense Fund said.
The LDF is citing 2020 Census Data, illustrating Black voters make up 20.64% of the population in the census tract surrounding the Morton Ranch High voting location. Latino voters make up 54.06% of the population.
“It seems like there’s a consistent pattern that we’re noticing in terms of what demographics are able to impact the electoral system of their communities and what demographics are unable to,” Ingram said.
The LDF says the closure may have to do with low voter turnout at the location, but the LDF says voters there, including those with a lack of transportation or means, should be able to vote early near them.
Katy ISD sent KHOU 11 a letter its general counsel emailed to Ingram explaining why the district moved the early voting site.
"Morton Ranch High School was an early voting location for the past five years. Every year that location by far had the lowest number of voter turnout as evidenced in the chart attached to the end of this letter," the letter read. "We are the largest growing school district in Texas. The majority of this growth has occurred in the northwest quadrant of the District. Therefore, the decision was made by the Board of Trustees not to close the Morton Ranch High School location, but to move it to neighboring Paetow High School, which is more central to rapid growth of the district."
Morton Ranch High School will still be used on May 6 for the general election.
List of early voting polling locations
- Leonard Merrell Center (Room 143-144) -- 6301 S. Stadium Lane
- Cinco Ranch High School (PAC Lobby) -- 23440 Cinco Ranch Blvd.
- James E. Taylor High School (PAC Lobby) -- 20700 Kingsland Blvd.
- Paetow High School (PAC Hallway) -- 23111 Stockdick School Road
- Seven Lakes High School (Gym Lobby) -- 9251 S. Fry Road