Anger is boiling over in Texas after a judge refused to force Tarrant County to restore 92 Election Day polling locations, leaving a dramatically reduced voting map in place just weeks before the November midterms.
District Judge Patrick Gallagher denied the request Tuesday in a one-page ruling that did not explain, according to The Dallas Morning News.
The decision means Tarrant County will move forward with 224 Election Day polling sites, down from 316 during the 2022 midterms. Early voting locations have also fallen from 50 to 47, even as Elections Administrator Clint Ludwig expects roughly 40% more voters than four years ago.
Four women who brought the lawsuit argued the closures would hit Black, Hispanic, and lower-income communities hardest by forcing some voters to travel farther or wait longer to cast a ballot.
Ludwig acknowledged during testimony that he did not assess how the cuts would specifically affect Black, Hispanic, or low-income voters. He also said he had not sought input from Black or Hispanic organizations while drawing up the reduced list.
In one predominantly Black and Hispanic East Fort Worth ZIP code, all three polling sites used in 2022 have been removed. In another, four of five were cut.
Texas Turns Their Anger On Republicans
Reaction on the Texas subreddit where the story was shared was furious, with many commenters framing the decision as part of a wider political fight over voting access.
A largely upvoted commenter declared: “Texas isnt a red state – it’s a voter suppression state.”
Another urged voters to respond at the ballot box: “The people of America will remember this shame. Organize now. Get a plan going and vote these vile people out.”
Others specifically pushed for voters frustrated with the Republican-controlled county leadership to back Democrats down the ballot, while several commenters urged Tarrant County residents to vote early rather than risk Election Day complications.
Of course, those comments reflect the anger inside one Reddit discussion, not a scientific measure of wider Texas public opinion. But they underline the political danger surrounding a decision already facing intense local opposition.
Republican county officials have defended the reductions as a matter of cost and efficiency. County Judge Tim O’Hare and Republican commissioners Matt Krause and Manny Ramirez backed the proposal, while Democratic commissioners Alisa Simmons and Roderick Miles opposed it.
The lawsuit itself is not over. Gallagher rejected the request to restore the sites before the election, but he did not dismiss the wider case or rule on whether the cuts were discriminatory.
The immediate consequence for voters is simple, though. Early voting begins October 19, Election Day is November 3, and those 92 polling places are not coming back before ballots are cast.
