Government
BY AUBREY VOGEL
Fort Bend County to redraw lines for voter precincts
proposed the second contract with Brazil & Dunn LLP, which totaled $50,000 and didn’t receive support to go to a vote. At the previous March 25 meeting, commissioners voted 3-2—with Prestage and McCoy dissenting—to redistrict voting precincts at a cost of no more than $60,000 to ensure the county was meeting Texas Election Code requirements. The state requires counties with a population of over 100,000 contain no less than 100 registered voters and no more than 5,000 voters in each precinct. The code states counties should review precincts during March or April of each odd-numbered year, Morgan said in his letter. The last time the county redrew voter precincts was in 2021, adopting the new precinct maps Jan. 1, 2022. By the numbers April data from the county’s election administra- tion office shows 38 of 174 voter precincts aren’t in
Fort Bend County officials clashed over legal representation at the April 22 meeting as officials work to correct voter precincts. This came after State Rep. Matt Morgan, R-Richmond, sent a letter to commissioners in February saying 37 of 174 of the county’s voter precincts during the November election didn’t meet state population requirements. What residents need to know At the meeting, commissioners denied two contracts with legal offices to redraw the boundaries of voter precincts in the county. • The first contract, totaling $30,000, was with The Law Offices of Tony McDonald. Precinct 3 Commissioner Andy Meyers proposed the contract, but commissioners denied it in a 2-3 vote, with commissioners Grady Prestage, Dexter McCoy and Vincent Morales dissenting. • County Attorney Bridgette Smith-Lawson
Fort Bend County voter precinct compliance Compliant
precincts: 136 Overpopulated precincts: 33 Underpopulated precincts: 5
SOURCE: FORT BEND COUNTY/COMMUNITY IMPACT
compliance. Of those, 33 are over the 5,000-voter threshold. Five precincts have less than the state-required minimum of 100 registered voters. Looking ahead County election officials expect to provide a revised map to court before the end of June.
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