1 Denise Hulett (SBN 121553) dhulett @maldef.org 2 Matthew J. Barragan (SBN 283883) mbarragan @maldef.org 3 MEXICAN AMERICAN LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND 4 634 S. Spring Street Los Angeles, CA 90014 5 Tel: (213) 629-2512 Fax: (213) 629-0266 6 Attorneys for Plaintiffs 7 JUAN ATILANO, CARMEN CARDOSO, JESUS HERNANDEZ, JESUS HERNANDEZ JR., and JOSE HUERTA 8 9 10 11 SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA FOR THE COUNTY OF SAN DIEGO 12 JUAN ATILANO, CARMEN CARDOSO, JESUS Case No.: HERNANDEZ, JESUS HERNANDEZ JR., and 13 JOSE HUERTA COMPLAINT FOR VIOLATION OF THE CALIFORNIA VOTING RIGHTS ACT 14 Plaintiffs, [Elections Code sections 14025-14032] 15 vs. Jli_ F_.i\LLBE.OOK P:UBLIC UT_ILIJYDISIRI<:;T,_ 17 Defendant. 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 COMPLAINT FOR VIOLATION OF THE CALIFORNIA VOTING RIGHTS ACT
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Plaintiffs Juan Atilano, Carmen Cardoso, Jesus Hernandez, Jesus Hernandez Jr., and Jose Huerta ("Plaintiffs") complain and allege as follqws: NATURE OF THE CASE 1. Plaintiffs are registered voters who bring this action for declaratory and injunctive relief against the Fallbrook Public Utility District (hereinafter "Fallbrook PUD") located in San Diego County, California, for its violation of the California Voting Rights Act of 2001 (hereinafter the "CVRA"), Cal. Elec. Code 14025 et seq. Plaintiffs allege that.fallbrook PUD's at-large method of election of its Board of Directors has resulted in vote dilution for Latino residents and affords Latino citizens less opportunity than other members of the electorate to participate in the political process. Plaintiffs allege Fallbrook PUD's at-large election method impairs Latino residents from electing candidates of their choice or influencing the outcome of Board elections. Plaintiffs seek to enjoin Fallbrook PUD from holding future at-large elections and to require Fallbrook PUD to design and implement a by-district election method to remedy its violation of the CVRA. 2. There has been no Latino representation on the Fallbrook PUD Board of Directors since at least 1992. This historic and current absence of Latinos on the Fallbrook PUD Board of Directors is 16.- a resu:ifof Latino voters' lack: of access to the politiciilpfocess. Voting ffi Fallor6okPUD-isfacially 17 polarized between Latino and non-latino voters. Fallbrook PUD's at-large election method violates 18 thecvra. 19 PARTIES 20 3. Plaintiffs Juan Atilano, Carmen Cardoso, Jesus Hernandez, Jesus Hernandez Jr., and 21 Jose Huerta are registered voters residing in Fallbrook PUD. All Plaintiffs are Latino and as such are 22 members of a protected class under the CVRA. Cal. Elec. Code 14026 (d). Plaintiffs are registered 23 voters who reside within the Fallbrook PUD, are over the age of 18 and are eligible to vote in 24 Fallbrook PUD Board of Directors elections. 25 4. Defendant Fallbrook PUD is a public utility district and a political subdivision within 26 the State of California, governed by a five-member Board of Directors elected at-large, and is subject 27 to the CVRA. Cal. Elec. Code 14026 (c). 28 COMPLAINT FOR VIOLATION OF THE CALIFORNIA VOTING RIGHTS ACT
1 2 5. JURISDICTION AND VENUE This Court has jurisdiction over Plaintiffs' claims for declaratory and injunctive relief 3 under the CVRA. Cal. Elec. Code 14032. Venue in the County of San Diego is proper as this is an 4 action against Fallbrook PUD. Defendant is situated in the County of San Diego, where Plaintiffs 5 reside and where violations of the CVRA have occurred, and unless enjoined, will continue to occur. 6 Cal. Civil Proc. Code 395(a). 7 FACTS 8 6. The population of Fallbrook PUD is 32, 559, 44% of whom are Latino, according to the 9 2010 Census data. The Latino citizen voting age population is approximately 22% of the total citizen 10 voting age population of Fallbrook PUD. 11 7. Fallbrook PUD is governed by a five-member Board of Directors. The Board of 12 Directors is responsible for establishing water charges, levy assessments and all policies, procedures 13 and regulations pertaining to the operation of water and sewer services. 14 8. The Fallbrook PUD Board of Directors is elected by an at-large method of election. 15 Under this method of election, all the voters of the entire district are eligible to vote for and elect all 16. airecfors to the Fallbrook PUDBoar([ - 17 9. Directors are elected to four-year terms and vacancies are elected on a staggered basis 18 in general elections in November of even-numbered years. 19 10. Although Latinos represent 44% of the overall population and 21% of the citizen voting 20 age population ("CV AP"), there are no current Latino directors on the Board of Directors at present, 21 and there have been none for at least two decades. 22 11. Racially polarized voting is defined in Section 14026(e) of the CVRA as voting in 23 which there is a difference in the electoral choices of voters in a protected class and electoral choices 24 of the voters in the rest of the electorate. None of the recent Fallbrook PUD Board of Directors 25 elections were racially contested. Racially polarized voting regularly occurred over the last decade in 26 other electoral choices made by voters in Fallbrook PUD, evidenced by the electoral choices of 27 Fallbrook PUD's Latino and non-latino voters in racially contested county and statewide elections. 28 Cal. Elec. Code 14028 (a). 2 COMPLAINT FOR VIOLATION OF TilE CALIFORNIA VOTING RIGHTS ACT
1 12. County, State Legislative and Congressional elections were racially polarized by 2 Fallbrook PUD voters between 2006 and 2014. In Fallbrook Union Elementary School District, which 3 completely encompasses Fallbrook PUD, racially polarized voting occurred in racially contested 4 elections. In recent elections, Latino voters within Fallbrook PUD voted cohesively for their preferred 5 candidates who lost because of non-latino bloc voting. Racially contested statewide elections since 6 2006 were also regularly characterized by racially polarized voting by Fallbrook PUD voters, where 7 Latino voters voted cohesively for their candidate of choice and a bloc of non-latino voters defeated 8 Latino voters' candidate of choice. Even when Latino candidates won statewide, those same Latino- 9 preferred candidates lost in Fallbrook PUD precincts to a non-latino voting bloc. 10 13. The dearth of Latino candidates for the Board of Directors is due to the perceived 11 futility of Latino candidacies in expensive racially polarized at-large Fallbrook PUD elections. 12 14. Four out of the five current directors have served for over a decade; one director has 13 retained his position for twenty-two years. 14 15. Directors frequently run unopposed. In every election cycle between 2008 and 2012, 15 voting for PUD Board of Directors was canceled due to lack of opposing candidates. To --16. Latmovoteffegistratioii anirtumoutis lowin cmnparison to ilienotflatinovoter 17 population. 18 17. Racially polarized voting in Fallbrook PUD at-large elections results in vote dilution, 19 which diminishes the ability of Latino voters to meaningfully participate in the political process, elect 20 candidates of their choice, and influence the outcome of elections. 21 18. On March 18, 2015, Plaintiffs' counsel sent Defendants a demand letter alleging racial 22 polarization and violation of the CVRA, and requested Fallbrook PUD to change from at-large to by- 23 district election method. 24 FIRST CAUSE OF ACTION 25 (Violation of California Voting Rights Act of 2001, 26 Cal. Elec. Code 14025 et seq.) 27 19. Plaintiffs refer to and incorporate paragraphs 1 through 18 as though fully set forth 28 herein. 3 COMPLAINT FOR VIOLATION OF TilE CALIFORNIA VOTING RIGHTS ACT
1 20. An actual controversy has arisen and now exists between the parties relating to the legal 2 rights and duties of all Plaintiffs and the Defendant, for which Plaintiffs desire declaratory and 3 injunctive relief. 4 21. Fallbrook PUD's use of an at-large system of elections for the election of its Board of 5 Directors violates the California Voting Rights Act. Cal. Elec. Code 14027-14028. 6 22. The Court is authorized to provide appropriate remedies, including the imposition of a 7 district-based election system that will provide an opportunity for the members of the protected class to 8 elect candidates of their choice or to influence the outcome of elections to the Fallbrook PUD Board of 9 Directors. 10 23. Defendant's wrongful conduct has caused and, unless enjoined by this Court, will 11 continue to cause immediate and irreparable injury to Plaintiffs. 12 24. Plaintiffs have no adequate remedy at law for the injuries they currently suffer and will 13 otherwise continue to suffer. 14 PRAYERFORRELIEF 15 WHEREFORE, Plaintiffs ask this Court to: 16 ----r. Find and declare tliatthe FaU1:5roolcPUD's-current at= large methodof-electiun-forits 17 Board of Directors violates the CVRA, and that adoption of an election system using single member 18 districts is required by the CVRA; 19 2. Grant temporary, preliminary, and permanent injunctive relief enjoining Fallbrook PUD 20 from imposing or applying its current at-large method of election; 21 3. Grant injunctive relief mandating Fallbrook PUD to design, adopt, and implement an 22 election system using single member districts, as defined by the CVRA (Cal. Elec. Code 14026), 23 utilizing a fair and non-discriminatory by-district electoral plan tailored to remedy Fallbrook PUD's 24 violation of the CVRA; 25 4. Grant Plaintiffs attorneys' fees and costs of litigation pursuant to the CVRA, Cal. Elec. 26 Code 14030, Cal. Civil Proc. Code 1021.5 and/or other applicable law; and 27 Ill 28 /II 4 COMPLAINT FOR VIOLATION OF TilE CALIFORNIA VOTING RIGHTS ACT
1 5. Grant Plaintiffs such further relief as the Court deems just and proper. 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 t6 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Dated: June 24, 2015 - ------------ Respectfully submitted, MEXICAN AMERICAN LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATION FUND (. {tl~ :L- Attorneys for Plaintiffs 5 COMPLAINT FOR VIOLATION OF THE CALIFORNIA VOTING RIGHTS ACT