Questioned commissioner’s election gets day in court
Visiting judge will decide if outcome in Bowie County Precinct 3 election stands
NEW BOSTON, Texas — A bench trial is expected to go forward Tuesday in a lawsuit stemming from a contested race for Bowie County Commissioners Court.
Kyle Barrett filed suit against his opponent, James Strain, arguing irregularities on election day and the handling of ballots call the results into question.
Strain, the incumbent, was declared the winner of the Precinct 3 race following the election and after a recount in mid-March.
Strain won the election by 27 votes, according to complete but unofficial results.
The case is set for a bench trial Tuesday before visiting District Judge Tim Womack at the Bowie County Courthouse in New Boston. In a bench trial, the judge, rather than a jury, decides the outcome of a case after hearing arguments and considering evidence presented by both sides. Womack presides over the 307th District Court in Gregg County.
Barrett’s suit alleges that some voters who supported him were turned away from polling places for no reason, that ballots were missing or added and that election staff were illegally electioneering at their polling places on behalf of Strain and to the detriment of Barrett.
“The court should hold that there were irregularities of a sufficient nature to prevent the will of the electorate from being discernible from the contested race, find that it is necessary to declare the contested race void, and order the Bowie County Republican Party to hold a new primary for its nomination to represent the Precinct on the Commissioners’ Court,” Barrett’s complaint alleges.
Barrett and Strain, both Republicans, were the only two
candidates running for the office.
Strain filed a response to Barrett’s complaint, refuting Barrett’s allegations and denying the need for a do-over election exists.
“Contestant’s contest has no merit, is based on speculation, and erroneous math, and does not show that the outcome of the contested election, as shown by the final canvass, is either not the true outcome or that errors of election officials materially affected the outcome of the election,” Strain’s response states. Barrett is represented by Elizabeth Alvarez of Forney, Texas. Strain is represented by Eric Opiela of Austin.