A federal appeals court has affirmed a lower ruling that a Houston suburb's voting plan discriminated against Hispanics and cannot be used in May city elections.
The Houston Chronicle (http://bit.ly/2kzVryO ) reports the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday affirmed a judge's Jan. 16 ruling on Pasadena elections.
U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal decided the Pasadena election system must be under federal oversight for six years. Rosenthal determined the city's voting plan diluted Latino power at the polls.
The appeals court upheld a ruling that orders Pasadena to revert to a 2011 system using all single-member districts for the May elections, when the entire city council and the mayor's seat are on the ballot.
An attorney for Pasadena said Friday the city was considering whether to appeal.
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Information from: Houston Chronicle, http://www.houstonchronicle.com
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