Arlington’s city council voted 8-1 Tuesday night to approve a resolution opposing efforts to redistrict Tarrant County commissioner precincts.
The resolution lays out concerns over legality and the use of outdated census data to draw five proposed maps.
Rebecca Boxall, the council member representing District 5, said she supported the resolution because the context of the redistricting effort "is so anomalous."
The vote comes after Arlington spearheaded an investigation into the redistricting attempt. The investigation resulted in the mayors of 10 Tarrant County cities – including Arlington Mayor Jim Ross, Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker, Haltom City Mayor An Truong and Grand Prairie Mayor Ron Jensen – signing an open letter pleading with county elected leaders to slow down the process for more community input and legal review.
While the letter and Tuesday’s resolution have no legal bearing on the county’s decision to redistrict, Ross previously told KERA News he hopes they will sway the Tarrant County Commissioners Court.
He hopes Republican commissioners and Judge Tim O’Hare, who initiated and have continued redistricting over the objects of Democratic counterparts, will see that other leaders across the county are opposed to the effort.
Ross emphasized that he is not opposed to redistricting itself, but to the speed of the process. The Republican majority has set a self-imposed deadline of June 3 for approving new districts, less than two months after the court voted 3-2 along party lines to start redrawing its political boundaries.
The resolution and letter
The resolution calls for the county to extend that June 3 deadline until 2030, essentially scrapping the effort until the next census. It also calls for the county to allow more public input, conduct more analysis of the maps and to ensure the redrawn districts comply with state and federal law.
The resolution says the county should make sure the new districts meet legal and ethical standards like maintaining communities of interest, ensuring no election precinct is split between more than one commissioner precinct and “narrowly tailoring the map to comply with the US Voting Rights Act.”
It also calls for the county to appoint a citizens advisory committee “representative of the various electoral interests in Tarrant County” and to host at least one public hearing for each city in Tarrant County for the convenience of residents.
The county held one public hearing in each of the four commissioner precincts throughout May. The schedule drew criticism from residents who spoke at commissioners court meetings, saying the timeline didn’t allow the county any time to actually implement public input and that there should have been more meetings.
The resolution reiterates many of the issues expressed in the open letter sent May 23. Both documents express concern about the legal challenges the county might face, as well as the way redistricting would impact the communities across the county.
Both make reference to the U.S. Voting Rights Act and state law that prohibits election precincts from being split between constituencies.
The Fort Worth City Council passed a similar resolution earlier this month, voting 6-4 along ideological lines.
Not a unanimous decision
Bowie Hogg, the council member for Arlington’s District 7, was the sole vote against the resolution.
He said during the meeting Tuesday that he would be voting no because he doesn't want the city to get into a fight with the county.
“I think what’s in this resolution is not a bad ask for where we’re going, but I think it’s getting us into a controlled fight we shouldn’t be getting into," Hogg said. "I say that and I know the mayor and the other council members aren’t afraid of a good fight. ... But we serve in non-partisan seats.”
Hogg also mentioned the city receives funding for certain programs from the county.
That funding, he said, relies on the Tarrant County Commissioners Court approving the expenses.
“We have to maintain that relationship no matter what happens,” Hogg said.
He reiterated several times that the discussion about redistricting is too partisan for the council to become involved. He expressed concern that the resolution would go against state law requiring municipal elected offices to be non-partisan.
Ross, who proposed the resolution and ordered the inquiry into the legality of redistricting, said Hogg is a respected and loved friend but that he disagrees.
“We didn’t make this a partisan fight," Ross said at Tuesday's council meeting. "When I spoke to other mayors they didn’t say this is a partisan fight. The people who are trying to call this partisan-esque are the ones pushing for redistricting.”
He said as Arlington leaders, the council has a responsibility to make sure residents and businesses in the city are appropriately represented and that there is transparency and opportunity for community involvement in the process.
But the concern for Arlington residents isn't the only reason Ross is opposed to this redistricting effort. The legal expert hired by the city, who has worked with Arlington in previous redistricting efforts, found that the redistricting likely violates the Voting Rights Act, he said.
Ross also said he isn't out looking for a fight, but won't shy away from one if he feels Arlington residents are being mistreated or not represented.
"I’m not going to be bullied or threatened into giving in on what is best for the residents of Arlington,” he said. “I couldn’t care less if it’s Republicans doing this, Democrats doing this, or an independent doing this. It must be done with transparency and within the limits of the laws and it simply is not according to our own home experts."
Three Arlington residents spoke in favor of the resolution, and against the redistricting attempt, saying they believe the effort is an illegal and partisan attempt to consolidate power.
Laura Farnell, one of the residents who addressed council, said she worries outdated census data will make any new constable precincts less representative of the people who live there.
"I think that whether someone has lived here seven months, seven years or seven decades, I think it’s important that their voice matters,” Farnell told the council.
Sarah Hissin, another resident, said she is worried about a lack of transparency, especially since she hasn't seen Judge Tim O'Hare.
The county hired the right-wing activist law firm Public Interest Legal Foundation to redraw the precincts.
The firm has faced controversy over previous redistricting attempts and lawsuits aiming to gain access to voter information.
Gerrymandering, racism and other concerns
While not the focus of the resolution or letter, the Republican push to redistrict has been decried by residents and some elected leaders as gerrymandering, racist and an attempt to make reelection for Democratic Commissioner Alisa Simmons impossible.
Simmons represents District 2, which includes cities like Arlington, Mansfield and Grand Prairie. She has opposed the redistricting attempt since the start, calling it an effort to get rid of her in the next election.
Matt Krause, the first-time Republican commissioner representing Precinct 3, said at a public hearing in Hurst May 21 that he wants to redistrict as a way to increase Republican power in the court.
"My entire goal, my entire purpose, my entire intention, is to allow Tarrant County to go from three Republicans, two Democrats on the commissioners court, to four Republicans, one Democrat,” Krause said.
The statement drew a mix of cheers and boos from the crowd.
In an opinion column in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Commissioner Manny Ramirez contradicted Krause, saying redistricting “isn’t about denying anyone representation, gaining power or stacking the deck.”
“It’s about ensuring we continue to have steady, effective leadership that prioritizes results over rhetoric and policies that work over political theater,” Ramirez wrote. “We’ve already seen the degradation of decorum when politics seeps into every discussion. We need to return to focusing on delivering the highest quality of service to our communities, not just getting attention.”
Arlington Mayor Jim Ross said he plans to attend the June 3 meeting to share his concerns directly with commissioners, but he hopes the open letter and resolution prompt county officials to take a breath and slow down.
"My hope is that the commissioners court takes another in-depth look at what’s going on, that they consult with the group out of Virginia they hired to do this redistricting, that they address our concerns," he told KERA last week, "maybe even have their lawyers sit down with our lawyers and say, 'Here’s where one is right and one is wrong,' and see what we can come up with in a collaborative fashion."
Got a tip? Email James Hartley at jhartley@kera.org. You can follow James on X @ByJamesHartley.
KERA News is made possible through the generosity of our members. If you find this reporting valuable, consider making a tax-deductible gift today. Thank you.
