Arrest made amid public outcry as Tarrant County delays vote to close 100+ polling locations
Tarrant County delays plan to close 100+ voting locations
Tarrant County Commissioners tabled the vote on a plan to drastically cut the number of polling places. Critics argued the proposal to eliminate 40% of the county's election voting sites would hurt voter turnout, primarily in areas where residents are predominately people of color.
FORT WORTH, Texas - After a hotly-contested Tuesday meeting, Tarrant County officials tabled a vote to close 40% of the county's polling locations ahead of this year's midterm elections.
Tarrant County polling locations
What we know:
Tarrant County is considering a plan to reduce the county's number of polling locations from 316 to 176.
Tarrant County Judge Tim O'Hare said the move would save the county $1 million in taxpayer money.
He also pointed to polling locations that saw low turnout during the 2024 elections as a reason for the potential closure.
Tarrant County Judge Tim O'Hare
The other side:
Critics of the proposed move say it amounts to voter suppression, with many of the locations that would be shuttered being located in areas where residents are mainly people of color.
Opponents also questioned the urgent need to save taxpayer money. Tarrant County is currently on record as having more than $80 million in reserves.
Lines outside the meeting
Heated Commissioner's Court meeting
Local perspective:
The vote was scheduled during a Tarrant County Commissioners Court meeting on Tuesday. Dozens of speakers lined up outside the Tarrant County Administration Building, necessitating the use of an overflow room.
The meeting quickly became heated for both Tarrant County leaders and the public.
"America has the right to vote. It is wrong to suppress that. You are on the wrong side of history," Tarrant County resident Candace Swanson said.
"There is no justification for this move," Doretha Polite with the Texas Civil Rights Project said.
The room was cleared multiple times, including after a resident compared the plan to Texas becoming Russia, and after another resident called the vote "extremist (expletive)."
Multiple people were thrown out of the meeting during public comment. Former Texas State Rep. Lon Burnam, a prominent critic of O'Hare, was arrested after picking the microphone up during his time.
Burnam was booked into the Tarrant County Jail and has been charged with disruption of a meeting or procession.
Lon Burnam
After hours of public comment and discussion, O'Hare brought forth a measure to table the planned vote, which was seconded. Tarrant County Commissioner's Court voted 3-2 to delay the vote.
O'Hare said he will request more clarification on the plan's vetting and how to arrive at an appropriate number of sites.
A similar vote to cut early voting polling sites was also tabled.
What's next:
Tarrant County Commissioner's Court will bring back the planned vote during a September 1 meeting.
The Source: Information in this story comes from a Tarrant County Commissioner's Court meeting.