In a ruling by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, the three-judge panel stated in a split decision that only county-level election officials, not the Texas secretary of state, can be sued over the state’s voting laws. Three lawsuits had challenged the constitutionality of statutes that eliminated straight-ticket voting and created changes to the mail-in ballot process. LPHS appellate partner David Coale spoke to KDFW FOX 4 Dallas to explain the appellate court ruling. “There was a vigorous dissent by a 40- year veteran of the appellate bench who said this changes the rules about who you can and cannot sue in federal court to vindicate our federal rights," he said. "There's only one secretary of state. There's 254 counties in Texas, and so just automatically that makes it harder."

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