Rowlett mayor cries foul after early voting site moved to smaller venue
ROWLETT, Texas - The mayor of the city of Rowlett claims voters in his city are getting shortchanged this election.
He says the Dallas County Elections Department approved a much smaller venue for early voting this year compared to previous elections.
The city of Rowlett is home to more than 60,000 people.
Like all Texans, early voting begins on October 21 for them. But there’s concern about where they’ll cast ballots.
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"This is targeting all of Rowlett voters," said Mayor Blake Margolis. "It will suppress votes."
The mayor says early voting at the Rowlett Community Centre during the last presidential election went smoothly, with ample space and parking.
"There are several hundred parking spaces on the site of the Rowlett Community Centre," he said.
But this election, Dallas County elections moved early voting less than a mile away to Freedom Place Church, where there are only about a dozen parking spots.
"It’ll absolutely be an inconvenience, and it will specifically target those who need a drive-up," Margolis said.
On Friday, FOX 4 reached out to the Dallas County Elections Department to hear its reasoning for the move. A spokesperson said he would get back to us but never did.
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Rowlett’s mayor says his preference to have early voting at the community center should come as no surprise to Dallas County Elections.
"We had a site tour with Dallas County Elections on April 30, which was far in advance of the presidential election," he said. "Telling them that the Rowlett Community Centre was an option — for free — for early voting."
Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price did not respond to FOX 4’s request for comment. He represents Rowlett.
However, it appears Price added election sites as a topic of discussion for next week’s commission meeting.