The panel leaned on the U.S. Supreme Court‘s 2018 decision in Minnesota Voters Alliance v. Mansky, which struck down a Minnesota law banning “political” apparel at polling places due to its lack of clarity. The Fifth Circuit found that Palo Pinto County’s regulations suffered from a similar lack of specificity.
Background of the Case
The regulations stemmed from incidents during Texas’ March primary elections, when conservative activists gathered at a major polling location in Palo Pinto County. Complaints from voters and a disabled resident who felt discouraged from voting led the county commissioners to pass new rules in April, including bans on signs on permanent county-owned structures, a limit of six signs per candidate, and restrictions on sign size.
However, the Palo Pinto County Conservatives, along with another group, quickly filed a lawsuit challenging the rules. They argued that the restrictions on electioneering violated their First Amendment rights. The U.S. District Court initially denied their request for a preliminary injunction, reasoning that the county property was not a “public forum” under state law and thus not subject to strict scrutiny.
