By Leah Dearborn

The Los Angeles County Superior Court will determine in May whether or not the city of Palmdale Ca. is guilty of discriminating against minority candidates. The Los Angeles Times reports:

The litigation is the latest in a series of racially themed conflicts in the Antelope Valley as blacks and Latinos have moved into once mostly white areas. Housing programs and police practices have been flash points as activists have challenged policies they perceive as unfairly targeting minority residents.

Plaintiffs say the city’sat-large election system violates the state’s 2001 Voting Rights Act, which guards against disenfranchisement of minorities. They seek a change to district-by-district voting

R. Rex Parris, mayor of the nearby city of Lancaster, is quoted by mercurynews.com on the issue:

“Despite a Latino population of approximately 54.4 percent and an African-American population of 14.8 percent in the city of Palmdale, only one Latino and not a single African-American has ever been elected to Palmdale’s City Council.”

City attorneys are arguing that since blacks and Latinos compose the majority of registered voters in Palmdale, they are already in a position to elect the officials that they feel best represent the community.

Attorney Kevin Shenkman, who is representing the plaintiff in the upcoming trial, argues that poor voter turnout amongst minority groups is because they have “grown to understand that their vote doesn’t matter.”

City Accused Of Discrimination