City Puts Only One Early Voting Site South of Sunland Park Drive
Did the City of El Paso Violate the Voting Rights Act in Selecting Early Voting Sites
There are five early voting sites for the City Council runoff for District 1 and District 8.
The El Paso City Council has clustered four of the five in the Westside, along the I-10 corridor between Sunland Park Drive and Artcraft Road.
Only one early voting site is south of Sunland Park Drive and that is the County Court House which is Downtown.
This is the only early voting site serving people living between Sunland Park Drive and Fonseca Drive near Ascarate Park.
To our knowledge, the city or county does not waive parking fees to the County Courthouse's parking garage if you want to vote there. This, in a way, imposes on voters a type of poll tax.
The City has put no early voting sites east of Downtown. None south of Shuster Drive other than Downtown. District 8 flows all the way east through South El Paso to Fonseca Drive. From Fonseca Drive to the County Court House, it is 5 miles depending on the route you take.
However, the four early voting sites on the Westside are between 1 1/2 to 3 miles apart. Two early voting cites are only 1 mile apart from each other.
Why are there no early voting sites south of Sunland Park Drive? Why are there no early voting sites east of Downtown? Early voting sites could have easily been set up at any of the housing units in South El Paso or any of the schools, community centers, or churches.
