Federal judge finds Spring Branch ISD in violation of Voting Rights Act

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A federal judge has found Spring Branch ISD in violation of the federal Voting Rights Act.

In 2021, Dr. Virginia Elizondo sued Spring Branch ISD alleging their school board system, comprised entirely of at-large seats, diminished the voting power of minorities.

Most school board members come from more affluent neighborhoods south of I-10, instead of seats being equally distributed among neighborhoods.

Elizondo had filed the suit after unsuccessfully running twice for a seat on the school board. At the time, a school board seat had never been held by a representative of color despite data showing nearly 60% of SBISD students identify as Hispanic.

The judge ruled in Elizondo's favor on Monday, giving the district 20 days to submit a plan to divvy the district up into electoral districts.

"What this is gonna do is it's gonna provide an opportunity for people to get elected by the people that live in their community," Elizondo told ABC13.

ABC13 was not able to reach defendants in the suit for comment on Monday evening.

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