February 21, 2009 – The Dallas Morning News reports that closing arguments were held in a trial over whether the Irving City Council’s at-large voting system suppressed the votes of Hispanics and violated the Voting Rights Act.
U.S. District Judge Jorge Solis said he hoped to decide within a month whether to require the council to create single-member districts.
Brewer Storefront represented plaintiff Manuel Benavidez, who filed the federal lawsuit claiming that the city’s at-large voting system blocked the votes of Hispanics.
David Ely, an expert for Benavidez, testified that he found several possible districts where eligible voters were mainly Hispanic.