CONTACT: David Ellison, david.ellison@cp1.hctx.net, (281) 352-9724
Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis' Statement on Supreme Court Decision Gutting Voting Rights Act
HARRIS COUNTY — Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis released the following statement in response to the Supremes Court's ruling in Louisiana v. Callais:
"Today’s decision effectively guts what is left of the Voting Rights Act and endangers the racial equality generations have fought, bled, and died for. This ruling is the latest in a series of coordinated attacks on our democracy, including the Governor’s racist scheme to rig Texas’ congressional maps.
"The Supreme Court has betrayed America to enable an extremist power grab by silencing communities of color, especially Black voters, and diluting our political power. Coming of age during the civil rights movement, I’ve seen firsthand the progress the Voting Rights Act made possible. I’ve spent decades fighting to defend fair representation and equal access to the ballot box.
"We must not stand by while a rogue court dismantles our freedoms to placate a wannabe dictator taking a torch to American democracy."
A longtime civil rights leader with more than four decades of public service, Commissioner Rodney Ellis represents Harris County Precinct One, a diverse, 365-square-mile region in the nation’s third-largest county. Under Commissioner Ellis’ leadership, the office champions purpose-driven public service to improve quality of life, build thriving communities, and advance opportunity, equity, and justice for all. Precinct One is home to more than 1.2 million residents, over 8,500 acres of greenspace, and major regional assets including the Texas Medical Center, George Bush Intercontinental Airport, leading sports and entertainment venues, several Fortune 500 headquarters, and all of Houston’s major institutions of higher learning. For more information, visit www.hcp1.net.