Countywide elections for all five seats on the Houston County Commission block representation for Black voters, resulting in an all-white board, according to lawsuit by the U.S. Department of Justice filed Thursday.
Only one Black candidate has ever been elected to the Houston Commission since post-Civil War Reconstruction in the Middle Georgia county, where 30% of active registered voters are Black.
The federal lawsuit, filed in the final days of the Biden Administration, alleges the county’s at-large election system violates the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which prohibits racial discrimination in elections.
At-large elections, where all voters can vote for every seat, enable the white majority to consistently outnumber Black voters, the lawsuit said. Most other county commissions across Georgia are elected by voters in specific districts rather than countywide.
“The current method of electing the Houston County Board of Commissioners dilutes the voting strength of Black citizens,” according to the lawsuit. “White voters cast their ballots sufficiently as a bloc to defeat Black voters’ preferred candidate.”
The Houston Commission said in a press release it’s investigating the allegations, noting that the lawsuit doesn’t include any claims of intentional racial discrimination.
“Houston County will always follow the law,” the commission said. “If we determine if we agree with the DOJ regarding a possible violation of the Voting Rights Act after reviewing all of the documents and evidence, we will take appropriate action at that time.”
The DOJ’s lawsuit asked a judge to order a new election system for the Houston Commission.
Houston County, located south of Macon with a population of about 172,000, includes the cities of Perry and Warner Robins.
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