ACLU sues Kansas town over Latino voting representation

By MARGARET STAFFORD
Associated Press

The American Civil Liberties Union alleges in a federal lawsuit that Dodge City, Kansas, is denying Latino voters a fair opportunity to elect representatives to its city commission. In a lawsuit filed Thursday night, the ACLU and other groups argue the city should be divided into five separate voting districts, replacing the current system of allowing everyone to vote for all five commissioners. The petition contends the change would allow Latino voters to elect their preferred representatives in at least two of the five districts. The lawsuit says no Latino candidate has been elected to the commission since at least 2000. However, current Commissioner Joseph Nuci Jr. said Friday that he is Latino and called allegations in the lawsuit “categorically false.”