2 0 2 2 A N N U A L C O M M U N I T Y G U I D E
lean anyway—it wasn’t a safe district. Now that’s a safe, safe district for Roy. So that’s the biggest high-level di erence that I would say, both in the state level but you see it play- ing out pretty strongly both in San Antonio as well as in New Braunfels,” Crosson said. Despite the new split in represen- tation, Crosson said that it is worth noting that when a representative goes to Washington, D.C., they are not likely to ask for an address if a resident calls for constituent services to gure out if they directly represent them or not, because representatives think of themselves as serving the whole area anyway. “Are you going to be treated di er- ently by your representative directly? I don’t really think it’s going to have that much impact. There’s not really evidence to that e ect,” he said. Contesting the outcomes of the redistricting process The process of creating the maps in the Texas Legislature brought resistance from various groups con- cerned the process would not result in an equitable reection of where new population growth occurred in the state, said Miguel Rivera, voting rights coordinator for the Texas Civil Rights Project. “So we know that in Texas over the past 10 years, the state’s population grew by 4 million people, and that 95% of that growth was from peo- ple of color. The maps at both the congressional level, the state Senate and even the state House level, don’t actively increase the districts that represent these new communities, but instead, actively increase major- ity Anglo districts in the map’s repre- sentation,” Rivera said.
From 2010-20, New Braunfels grew by 56.51%, from 57,740 residents to 90,370, according to U.S. census data, the fastest growing city under 100,000 people. Since 2010, the population of residents of color in New Braunfels has increased but not as much as the population of Texas overall. The white/non-Hispanic population in New Braunfels fell below 60% for the rst time. DEMOGRAPHIC TRENDS
NEWBRAUNFELS
TEXAS
between 2010 and 2020. New Braunfels added nearly 33,000 RESIDENTS
Texas added nearly
4MILLION RESIDENTS
between 2010 and 2020.
Roughly 48.97%
Roughly 95%
of that population growth came from people of color.
of that population growth came from people of color.
SOURCES: TEXAS LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL, U.S. CENSUS COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
PLANNING TO VOTE
Those allegations are in line with a U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit brought against the state of Texas on Dec. 6 alleging “vote dilution,” or spreading voters of color around several districts to reduce their vot- ing power. If that could be proven in court, it would be a violation of Sec- tion 2 of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, according to the lawsuit. “I think therewas a tactic as a part of a larger strategy that we saw in gerry- mandering from the state government this time around. I think the last time [in the last redistricting process] we de nitely saw the cracking of urban centers. But I think this time around as urban centers grew by so much and basically grew too big [and were split] into several districts,” Rivera said. While the redistricting process could also be challenged on a parti- san basis, Crosson said historically that is a losing argument. “The Supreme Court has consis- tently said, ‘While we don’t love the partisan stu , it’s probably constitu- tional. You know, it’s just politicians being politicians,’ and the Supreme
Court generally just tries to stay out of situations like that,” Crosson said. Fewer contested seats couldmean lower voter turnout Voter turnout in presidential elec- tions is always higher in “swing” states than “safe” states, Crosson said, and by that logic, if more con- gressional seats are considered safe, the less likely voters will show up. “The bigger takeaway is we’ve got more safe districts especially [in] this region than we’ve had in a very long time.”Why would a voter turn out and participate if the perception is that the winner is a forgone conclusion? “In political science, we call it the case of vanishing marginals. There’s just fewer what we would call purple districts,” he said. “That’s the direction it seems like Texas is headed—in the direction Cal- ifornia is already in. So we shall see,” Crosson said.
Elections at the federal, state and local levels with the new districts will be happening in 2022. Important election dates are listed below.
PRIMARY ELECTION
JAN. 31 FEB. 14-25 MARCH 1
Voter registration deadline
Early voting period
Election day
PRIMARY RUNOFF ELECTION
APRIL 25 MAY 16-20 MAY 24
Voter registration deadline
Early voting period
Election day
GENERAL ELECTION
OCT. 11 OCT. 24- NOV. 4 NOV. 8
Voter registration deadline
Early voting period
Election Day
For more information, visit communityimpact.com .
SOURCE: TEXAS SECRETARY OF STATE’S OFFICE COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
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NEW BRAUNFELS EDITION • JANUARY 2022
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