Fort Worth Council adopts resolution opposing Tarrant County mid‑decade redistricting

The Fort Worth City Council voted Tuesday to suspend its rules and approve a resolution opposing Tarrant County Commissioner’s Court’s mid‑decade redistricting plan, citing concerns about process, transparency and impacts on local communities.

Supporters said the county’s effort was rushed and excluded meaningful public input. “This process has lacked transparency, community input, and frankly, fairness,” said Daryl Davis, a District 6 resident, during public comment. Multiple speakers urged the council to act before the county’s scheduled vote on June 3.

The resolution, brought to the dais by council members and debated at length, did not change county law but was intended as an official statement from the city. Proponents said the county completed a redistricting cycle in 2021 and that the new mid‑decade move risks “packing” or “cracking” minority communities, potentially triggering Voting Rights Act challenges and litigation. Carol Peters, a Tarrant County Precinct 1 resident, said the maps would shift infrastructure responsibilities and warned taxpayers could face legal costs.

Council members described wide differences in perspective. Councilmember Elizabeth Beck said the county’s stated rationale had an explicitly partisan bent and warned the plan would “dilute voices” from diverse communities. Councilmember Larsdorf said he was concerned about process and about being left out of consultation on the council proposal itself. Councilmember Jeanette Martinez and others described the city’s own multi‑year redistricting as a model of transparency and community input and urged the council to speak up.

Speakers from neighborhoods and formerly elected leaders testified that outreach at county public meetings had been uneven or insufficient; Anne Zeta, a former Fort Worth council member, said consultants hired by the county were sometimes not presenting or responding at public meetings. Jackie Cox displayed precinct maps during public comment and described how one proposed map would reconfigure precinct boundaries with a “hook”‑shaped change that she said would pack Black voters into a single precinct.

Mayor Mattie Parker acknowledged differing views on procedure but said she would continue working with regional partners. The council’s approved resolution does not bind the county but sends a formal message opposing the county’s current redistricting process.

The council’s action came after public testimony from residents and neighborhood leaders and lengthy discussion among council members about process, precedent and local infrastructure impacts. The county’s vote on the new maps was scheduled for June 3; council members said the timing was a central reason to move quickly.

The resolution passed following a council vote after the rules were suspended to allow immediate consideration.