A GOP lawsuit that would have booted dozens of Dallas County Democrats off the ballot ahead of November’s general election has been dismissed. State District Judge Eric Moyé signed the order today.
The Dallas County Republican Party, under its new chair, Missey Shorey, filed the lawsuit in January, alleging that because local Democratic Chair Carol Donovan did not personally sign all of her party’s candidate applications, those 128 candidates were ineligible to run. The lawsuit was from the start a political move intended to rattle Democrats, even if it couldn’t loosen the party’s grip on most of Dallas County’s elected offices. It was at least partially successful on that front, the snafu providing yet another example of a party that can’t seem to get its act together.
Local Democrats took the opportunity to portray the lawsuit as a voter suppression ploy, a dirty trick from Republicans desperate to avoid a wipeout in the 2018 midterms. Donovan, the Dem chair who took the brunt of the criticism for the clerical error, beat off a primary challenge from lawyer Chris Hamilton in March.
According to the court order, Dallas County Republicans may still have to pay for legal fees associated with the lawsuit.
