To improve Texas’ abysmal voting record, start kids out young

Before my kids could walk, I dragged them with me to the polling place on Election Day to vote. When they got older, they even got to push the button. Afterward, they got a sticker they could show their friends.

The goal is to model civic duty in the hopes that someday, they’ll be good citizens, and good voters. And hey, even if they show up most of the time, they’ll be doing better than many Texans in a state that rivals Washington, D.C., for the lowest voter turnout in the nation. Why don’t Texans vote? We can blame it on apathy and disinterest in a state where redistricting has stamped out competitive races. Whatever the reason, Texas, at this point, simply doesn’t have a culture of voting.

I’m trying to establish that culture, or habit, in my kids. But what about other young people? Lack of participation is devastating in a democracy. Don’t we Texans have a responsibility to instill that civic duty in our young people? I believe so. But how far should we go?

That’s the question at the heart of a controversial opinion issued last week by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

It left some voting advocates scratching their heads and others concerned that it would discourage fledgling efforts to get young people to the polls.

“It’s disappointing,” said Linda Cohn, Houston-area president of the century-old nonpartisan League of Women Voters, which leads registration efforts at naturalization ceremonies and elsewhere and produces quality, nonpartisan voter guides. “Civic engagement is a proven pathway to a better community.

“You can never have too much of it.”

The opinion, issued at the request of state Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, seemed to cast doubt on whether there is any “educational purpose” in school districts busing eligible

students and employees to polling places to vote. In the absence of such purpose, the opinion stated, “a court would likely conclude that the transportation serves no public purpose of the school district” and therefore violates the Texas Constitution.

Now, Paxton’s ruling is nonbinding. And even if it did have some power, it’s not actually telling districts they can’t bus kids to vote. Unprincipled principals

The risk, though, is that it might have a chilling effect on promising efforts in Texas to improve abysmal voting turnout. One of the leaders of those efforts has been Texas Secretary of State Rolando Pablos, a Republican appointee whose Project V.O.T.E. encourages superintendents to sign a pledge to help cultivate lifelong voters among students.

“The future of our great state and our democracy depends on it,” Pablos wrote in a letter to superintendents.

The pledge has been signed by superintendents across the state, including Richard Carranza of Houston ISD, Charles Dupre of Fort Bend ISD, and Wanda Bamberg of Aldine ISD.

Pablos’ efforts were in response to revelations that only 14 percent of public high school principals followed a requirement in state law to distribute voter registration applications to their students turning 18 that year.

When it comes to voter apathy, we start ’em out early in Texas.

Then, a nonprofit educators’ group decided to take on the mission as well, pushing schools to encourage students to vote, and also public school employees, who could model the behavior and set an example. The group, Association of Texas Professional Educators, urged educators through its website, Texaseducatorsvote.com, to consider providing transportation to the polls, to sign a pledge to create a “culture of voting” and even suggested participants be rewarded. Dozens signed up.

Enter Bettencourt, the senator, who says he was concerned about the political motivations of ATPE.

“I am concerned about the legal implications of coercing government employees to ascribe an oath to a particular political viewpoint, as well as compelling the speech of government employees regarding the display of ‘I voted’ stickers,” Bettencourt wrote in his December request for an opinion. “The Texas Constitution prohibits the collection or expenditure of public money for anything other than public purposes.”

Yes, but isn’t civic engagement a public purpose? And what is coercive about letting teachers with voting stickers wear jeans or enjoy some other minor benefit? Bettencourt also asked the attorney general about laws against districts spending money on political ads designed to influence voters, suggesting ATPE was engaging in that behavior, but I did not see any political advertising or endorsement on the resolution, nor on the group’s website. Playing politics

The only hint of an ideological agenda was a list of reasons ATPE gave on its website for educators to get out and vote.

“The people you elect decide:” it went on, “How much to fund public schools. How much time, money, and attention is spent on standardized testing. Whether to support or undermine public education. Whether to privatize education in Texas.”

Personally, I see nothing wrong with reminding public school employees how their votes affect public schools. But I guess we’ve reached the point where even advocating for public education as we know it can be construed as political.

Bettencourt accused the website of linking to partisan groups. I didn’t see any Friday. But even the Texas secretary of state links to partisan groups: all major parties, so voters can inform themselves.

For its part, ATPE provided a full-throated defense of its program to the Texas attorney general, but it’s unclear if the response was even considered. Paxton’s opinion was issued the first business day following the deadline for submission of stakeholder briefs, the group said.

Bettencourt, meanwhile, acknowledged he does think voting is educational, and he does support registration drives that follow the law. He bristled when I asked if he had any partisan motives in challenging the ATPE program.

“Everybody can have their opinion in government,” Bettencourt told me. “As the economic conservative, I don’t want to pay for it. And I don’t think the vast majority of people want to, either.”

Bettencourt, a former Harris County election official, seemed to learn something from the AG opinion: that “educational purpose” would be a valid legal reason for districts to bus kids to the polls. Did that change his mind on the program, at least in regards to the kids?

“It’s something I’ve marked for further study,” he said late Friday. ‘Where do you stop?’

He still opposes employees getting a ride to the polls, no matter if they’re modeling the behavior we want to see in our future generations.

“The real problem is, once you start, where do you stop?” he said.

The same can be asked about voter apathy. It doesn’t stop if we do nothing. Some folks in this state are trying to do something. We should let them.

No opinion from the Texas AG, or from Bettencourt, has dissuaded me from believing their efforts are vital for the young voters, to the public in general, and to the future of this state we love.