AUSTIN, Texas _ Joined by national Democratic organizations, the Texas Democratic Party is seeking to overturn a state law that has long required candidates belonging to the governor's political party to be listed first on general election ballots.
In a federal court lawsuit filed Friday in Austin, Democrats argued the law gives an "unfair, arbitrary and artificial advantage" to Republicans, the party of Gov. Greg Abbott, in every contested partisan race _ national, state and local _ on the ballot.
The situation undermines the integrity of elections and dilutes the vote of Democratic Texans in violation of the Constitution's guarantees of equal protection under the law, the lawsuit argued.
"It is well-established that the candidate whose name is listed first on the ballot receives the advantage of additional votes solely due to her position on the ballot," the lawsuit said.
The phenomenon, known as position bias, is so widely known and acknowledged that Texas law requires counties to conduct a lottery system to determine the order of candidates on the ballot for primary elections, the lawsuit said.
"This system was put in place precisely so that no preference shall be given to any candidate," the lawsuit argued. "The same safeguards, however, are not in place for Texas' general elections."
The ballot order law was passed in 1985 _ when Democrats held the majority in the Texas House and Senate _ and took effect in 1986.
The law has given Republicans top billing on ballots since 1995, the year after George W. Bush was elected governor, launching the GOP on an unbroken streak of election victories.
Republican dominance showed signs of fracturing in the 2018 elections, however, when Democrats flipped 12 seats in the Texas House and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, Attorney General Ken Paxton and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz defeated Democratic opponents by less than 5 percentage points _ although Abbott won his race by 13 points.
Facing a 2020 election where they hope to mount a robust challenge to President Donald Trump and take majority control of the Texas House in time for redistricting in 2021, Democrats are scrapping for any available advantage, and that includes trying to remove a ballot order law that puts them at a perceived disadvantage.
As the lawsuit notes, Democrats can take control of the Texas House by flipping nine Republican-held seats next year.
"Because Republicans carried 17 districts by single digits in 2018, this opens up the very real prospect of majority control of the Texas State House being up for grabs in the 2020 election," the lawsuit said.
The state party, joined the Democratic National Committee and two committees that support Democrats running for the U.S. House and Senate, are asking U.S. District Judge Lee Yeakel to declare the ballot order statute unconstitutional and block state officials from enforcing it.
Under the law, candidates must be listed on general election ballots in descending order based on how many votes each party received in the most recent election for governor. Parties that did not have a candidate in the gubernatorial race must appear below, in an order determined by lottery.
The lawsuit seeks a ruling before the November 2020 elections.
"Unless the Ballot Order Statute is enjoined, in every single one of these races the Republican candidate will enter the election with a state-mandated thumb on the scale in favor of their election," the lawsuit said.
James Dickey, chairman of the Republican Party of Texas, said the lawsuit is part of a "destructive pattern" established by Democrats.
"If they can't get their extremist goals through free and fair elections, then they attempt to get it through a judge they can sway. They've turned to these tactics because they know they have no real solutions to offer the American people. Extreme ideas like open borders, limiting our Second Amendment, and free healthcare for illegal immigrants aren't right for Texas or America," Dickey said.
But Gilberto Hinojosa, chairman of the Texas Democratic Party, said it's time to end a 24-year advantage for Republicans.
"Elections should be fair and free. No political party should have an unfair advantage," Hinojosa said.
The lawsuit came two days after the Texas Democratic Party filed a separate federal court lawsuit seeking to overturn a new state law that bans polling locations that are not open every day of early voting.
That lawsuit argued the law makes it harder for hundreds of thousands of Texans, particularly younger voters at colleges and universities, to participate in early voting.
