Fayette County Commission Mulling Over Possible Appeal On Federal Ruling

The Georgia State Conference of the NAACP, the Fayette County Branch and about ten African American registered voters of Fayette County are the plaintiffs.

The defendants are the Fayette County Board of Commissioners.

Leah Aden is an attorney with the NACCP Legal Defense & Educational Fund.

She says it was clear that a black candidate could never win a seat on the county commission or school board:

“The majority of the county which is largely made up white voters always dilutes the vote of the voters of color even when the voters of color vote in mass for a preferred candidate.”

In his opinion U.S district Judge Timothy Batten, Sr.  wrote “a violation of section 2 of the voting rights act is established, “if based on the totality of circumstances, it is shown that . . .[members of the minority group] have less opportunity than other members of the electorate to participate in the political process and to elect representatives of their choice.”

Attorney Leah Aden calls the ruling victorious and much needed.

“What we are trying to do with this litigation is to make sure our clients and other clients in the county get leadership that actually represents them and actually makes living in Fayette County could for all people.”

Judge Batten ordered the Board of Commissioners and Board of Education develop a district-based remedial plan that contains at least one district in which Black voters comprise a majority of the voting-age population by June 25th of this year.

Fayette County commission chair Steve Brown told WABE he was not ready to comment on the ruling.