Lewisville Independent School District Agrees to Provide District with Greater Political Opportunity

August 18, 2023 – The Brewer Storefront (“Storefront”) announced a settlement with the Lewisville Independent School District (“Lewisville ISD”) of the Voting Rights Act lawsuit it filed against the school district last year on behalf of plaintiff Paige Dixon. The outcome comes nearly three years after the Storefront sued Lewisville ISD under the Voting Rights Act. The Storefront is the community-service legal affiliate of Brewer, Attorneys & Counselors.

The agreement resolves all claims against Lewisville ISD.  All seven members of Lewisville ISD’s school board are currently elected at-large. The agreement provides for a new electoral system consisting of five single-member districts and two at-large districts. The new election system will include at least one single-member district comprised of a majority of eligible minority voters – paving the way for greater political opportunity in one of the largest and most diverse school districts in North Texas. 

“This is an important outcome for our client, the school district, local voters, and all who believe our political systems work best when they are inclusive,” says William A. Brewer III, partner at Brewer Storefront. “We applaud the Lewisville ISD school board for agreeing to adopt an electoral system that provides voters of color a fair opportunity to elect candidates of their choosing. We hope the board’s actions are instructive to other school boards and elected bodies.”

Eligible voters residing in each of the five single-member districts will vote for candidates running in that district in which the candidates also reside. The candidates who run for the two at-large seats may live anywhere within the school district. A public hearing to discuss the framework is scheduled for August 28, 2023.

Lewisville ISD is a very diverse school district. According to the Texas Education Agency, as of the 2021-22 school year, the school district enrolled 49,113 students. The majority-minority student body was 36.6% white, 30.7% Hispanic, 15.7% Asian, 12% African American, and 4.6% two or more races. About 33.6% of students were economically disadvantaged and 19.6% were English learners.

This lawsuit had become among the most closely followed cases of its kind. In 2020, a similar lawsuit against LISD was dismissed by a judge who found that the plaintiff, Frank Vaughan, who is white, lacked standing. That decision did not speak to the merits of the argument or whether LISD’s voting system complied with the Voting Rights Act.

“I applaud the pursuit of the prior case – in the interest of the school system and the community it serves,” says Dixon, who is African American. “I appreciate the work of the Storefront and its commitment to this issue, even as it had to travel a long road to secure this outcome. The school board’s decision to change the election system is admirable as well, especially to those of us who believe in the promise of LISD and its future generations. A new day has finally arrived at LISD.”

The Brewer Storefront successfully resolved Voting Rights Act cases with the Richardson Independent School District in 2019, Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District in 2015, Irving Independent School District in 2014, and the Grand Prairie Independent School District in 2014. Those school districts now utilize remodeled voting systems to elect school board trustees. The Storefront also secured trial victories in Voting Rights Act cases against the City of Grand Prairie in 2015, the City of Farmers Branch in 2012, and the City of Irving in 2009. Those lawsuits paved the way for the formation of new voting systems and the election of minority candidates.

Joining Brewer in representing Ms. Dixon were Senior Associate Gizem Petrosino, Associate Malvina Palloj, and Public Affairs Manager Katherine Leal Unmuth.

About Brewer Storefront, PLLC:

Brewer Storefront is the community-service legal affiliate of the national litigation firm of Brewer, Attorneys & Counselors with offices in Dallas and New York. Founded in 1995, the Brewer Storefront tackles local and national issues, providing legal assistance to a wide range of individuals, business and community entities in need. Visit www.brewerstorefront.com.

Spectrum News 1 Reports on Brewer Storefront Voting Rights Case

On April 30, 2022, Spectrum News 1 reported on a voting rights lawsuit brought on behalf of plaintiff Paige Dixon by Brewer Storefront challenging Lewisville ISD’s system of electing trustees. The lawsuit argues that the election system violates the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and denies equal representation to people of color.

William Brewer, Dixon’s attorney, said that many Texas school districts are diverse but that is not reflected on school boards because of at-large voting systems used to elect trustees. “That means that if you have a voting [bloc] that is involved, turns out at the ballot box, that group can control the election of all seven seats,” he said.

Brewer said that similar lawsuits will continue to come up as the state grows and more school districts with at-large election systems have gaps in representation.

Dixon lives in Lewisville and ran for the Lewisville ISD school board last year and lost.

To read more, click here.

The Dallas Morning News, Other Media, Report on Brewer Storefront Voting Rights Case

On April 12, 2022, The Dallas Morning News and other local media reported on the Brewer Storefront lawsuit alleging that the at-large election system used to elect Lewisville ISD trustees violates the Voting Rights Act of 1965 because it denies fair representation to voters of color.

The Dallas Morning News published an article on the filing on the front page of the Metro & Business section of the newspaper on April 13. The Morning News reported that plaintiff Paige Dixon, who is African American and ran for the LISD school board, filed the suit.

The article quoted the lawsuit: “Ms. Dixon believes that the change from the at-large voting system to either a single-member districts or a cumulative voting system will empower people of color to run for Trustee positions, inspire greater electoral participation, and lead to a more equitable system of representation.”

Community Impact also reported on the filing, and quoted William Brewer speaking about the case.

“Our client represents a large number who believe the at-large election system used by Lewisville ISD illegally denies citizens of color a fair opportunity to elect candidates of their choosing—trustees that represent their interests, schools and communities,” Brewer said. “Clearly, the school board should adopt an electoral process, which allows minority voters and community members to fairly participate in this vibrant, multiracial school district.”

NBC DFW also published a report on the filing.

Brewer Storefront News Release: Lawsuit Claims Lewisville ISD Electoral System Violates Voting Rights Act of 1965

Dallas, Texas…April 12, 2022 – Brewer Storefront filed suit in federal court on behalf of plaintiff Paige Dixon against the Lewisville Independent School District (LISD) and its trustees, alleging that the school district’s election system violates the Voting Rights Act of 1965 because it denies fair representation to voters of color. 

Filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Sherman Division, the lawsuit claims that the school district’s at-large voting system denies Hispanic, African American and Asian voters a fair opportunity to elect school board representatives of their choice. The Storefront is the community service legal affiliate of Brewer, Attorneys & Counselors.  

The lawsuit alleges that, based on the district’s demographics, one would expect that a Latino, African American or Asian school board member could be elected. Yet, all seven school board members, as they have been for years, are white.

“Our client represents a large number who believe the at-large election system used by Lewisville ISD illegally denies citizens of color a fair opportunity to elect candidates of their choosing – trustees that represent their interests, schools and communities,” says William A. Brewer III, partner at Brewer Storefront and lead counsel for plaintiff Paige Dixon. “Clearly, the school board should adopt an electoral process which allows minority voters and community members to fairly participate in this vibrant, multiracial school district.” 

LISD is a richly diverse school district.  As of the 2020-21 school year, the student population was 37.6% white, 30.5% Hispanic, 15.5% Asian, and 11.6% African American, and 4.4% Two or More Races.

However, in addition to the all-white seven-member school board, LISD’s 16-member administrative “District Leadership Team” (including the interim superintendent) has only one person of color serving on it, a team comprised of 15 white members and one African American woman, and no Hispanic or Asian administrators.  

Under the current electoral system, school board members are elected at large. Candidates run for “places” but do not represent any specific geographic area. The lawsuit claims the at-large system rewards white voters for voting as a bloc and denies political opportunity to non-white voters.  

The lawsuit refers to LISD’s at-large election system and the importance of school board trustees and states that, “Unfortunately, when the electoral process by which officials are chosen ‘stacks the deck’ against people of color such bodies cease to be ‘representative.’”

The lawsuit alleges that, “The at-large system discourages minority-preferred candidates from seeking office because it effectively functions as a white-controlled referendum on all candidates where white voters control all seven Trustee positions.”

According to the lawsuit, the numbers of Hispanic, African American and Asian voters are sufficiently large and geographically compact such that at least one single-member electoral district could be created in which voters of color are a majority.

The lawsuit describes the significant “achievement gap” which exists between the lowest performing elementary schools in the district that are majority minority in enrollment and higher achieving schools situated in the neighborhoods in which the all-white members of the LISD board of trustees reside. 

Dixon, who is African American, is an active member of her community, a U.S. Army combat veteran, and a mother of two children who have attended LISD schools. She previously served as PTA President at Rockbrook Elementary School in Lewisville ISD from 2017 to 2021. She ran for Place 1 on the LISD school board in May 2021 and lost.

Ms. Dixon’s community involvement is extensive; in addition to her work as PTA President, she has been a member of the LISD Academic Calendar and Superintendent Parental Advisory committees; she chaired the LISD Council of the PTA’s Advocacy Committee; served as a volunteer coordinator of the LISD High School Band Booster Club; volunteered for Denton County Meals on Wheels; and is a member of the Concerned Citizens & African-American Parents (CCAAP).

Brewer Storefront previously brought a voting rights lawsuit against LISD in 2019 on behalf of plaintiff Frank Vaughan. The Court concluded that Mr. Vaughan, who is white, did not meet the definition of an “aggrieved person” under the VRA because his right to vote was not infringed “on account of his race.”

The Storefront has successfully challenged violations of the Voting Rights Act on behalf of other communities of interest in previous actions.  

The Storefront successfully resolved Voting Rights Act cases with the Richardson Independent School District in January 2019, the Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District in 2015, and the Grand Prairie Independent School District in 2014. All districts now utilize remodeled voting systems. The Storefront also secured trial victories in Voting Rights Act cases against the Irving Independent School District in 2014, the City of Farmers Branch in 2012, and the City of Irving in 2009. Those lawsuits paved the way for the formation of new voting systems and the election of minority candidates.