A Latinx advocacy organization is urging for a federal investigation into the actions of Texas' Attorney General, due to links between home searches and an inquiry into alleged voter fraud.
In a correspondence to the Department of Justice's civil rights division, the president and CEO of the League of United Latin American Citizens urged prompt action by the federal agency.
They asserted that the individual's actions represented a deliberate attempt to stifle Latino voting via intimidation and harassment, contravening the Voting Rights Act and other federal civil rights statutes.
To date, no legal charges have ensued as a consequence of the raids. Last week, the attorney general's office reported that warrants were executed in Frio, Atascosa, and Bexar counties in the context of an "election integrity investigation" dating back to 2022, as per their description.
In a communiqué last week, the attorney general's office disclosed that its "election integrity unit" was examining a referral submitted by Audrey Louis, the district attorney for the 81st judicial district, which involved accusations of electoral fraud and vote collecting.
"Secure elections are the bedrock of our republic," stated the attorney general in the statement. "We were delighted to assist when the district attorney referred this case to our office for investigation. We are fiercely devoted to safeguarding the sanctity of the ballot box and the legitimacy of every lawful vote. This implies upholding accountability for individuals responsible for election crimes."
Neither the attorney general's office nor the district attorney's office responded to demands for comment from CNN on Monday concerning the investigation and its specifics.
In the past, the individual has been accused of employing intimidation techniques.
He took up the electoral fraud issue following President Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 election, initiating a federal lawsuit to reverse the results in four pivotal swing states. The US Supreme Court rejected that lawsuit and the State Bar of Texas filed a lawsuit against Paxton in 2022 for misrepresenting assertions of substantial electoral fraud.
Critics claimed that earlier this year, the individual targeted an El Paso nonprofit that aids migrants, alleging it facilitated unlawful entry to the United States, alien harboring, and human smuggling. Before a judge halted his efforts to "bulldoze" over the group "without consideration for due process or fair play," the judge's decision said.
He has pursued the medical records of transgender youth – including those allegedly protected by patient privacy laws – in search of gender-affirming care at out-of-state clinics.
Under the state's extreme abortion ban, he publicly exposed both a patient seeking an abortion and her physician in an open letter threatening potential first-degree felony prosecutions and civil penalties of $100,000.
At a press conference Monday outside the attorney general's office in San Antonio, representatives of LULAC and Democratic activists denounced the raids and criticized the individual for launching what they called an intimidation campaign against Latino voters.
"Attorney General Paxton is employing his position of authority to harass and intimidate Latino nonprofit organizations, Latino leaders, and LULAC members," Palomares said. "This is clear voter intimidation, and LULAC will fight for the right of every Latino to exercise their right to vote."
Those whose dwellings were raided included Cecilia Castellano, a Democrat running for a state House seat, as well as a 73-year-old woman and an 80-year-old woman, according to LULAC. At least six LULAC members had their homes searched, Palomares stated, as per The Associated Press.
"You don't go after our grandmothers. You don't go after our great-grandmothers," said Garcia, another LULAC leader. "And you don't go after them because they are simply trying to vote."
Castellano told CNN's Laura Coates on Monday night that her phone was confiscated during the search of her home.
"I was stunned. I'm still stunned. ... I'm more agitated because my son was a few feet away," Castellano said.
Lidia Martinez, an 87-year-old activist and LULAC member who has long assisted in voter registration, told reporters at Monday's press conference that armed officers with the attorney general's office showed up to her home at the crack of dawn August 20 with a search warrant. She said they informed her that the search was related to fraud and questioned her for three hours. She said they also made her stand outside in her nightgown.
"It was just embarrassing, intimidating, (and) harassment," she said, growing emotional. "They searched everything in my house."
She claimed she was questioned about other LULAC members, and she condemned the search as a "Gestapo-style" raid. Her devices, personal calendar, and voter registration materials were confiscated, according to LULAC.
"I don't do anything illegal. I adhere to the rules of the elections office, and I have never done anything illegal as far as voter registration or mail-in ballots or any of the things they're looking for," she said. "I don't know who's doing it. And I don't care to know; I'm not associated with them. I'm not guilty of it, but I'm being harassed. I'm sick."
In the letter to the federal government, LULAC argued that the recent raids were a manifestation of a broader trend of voter intimidation in Latino and Black communities.
"Attorney General Paxton's actions are not isolated incidents but are part of a coordinated effort to stifle the growing political influence of minority communities in Texas," the letter stated. "These actions are reminiscent of past attempts to intimidate and disenfranchise voters through fear and coercion."
The president and CEO of the League of United Latin American Citizens, who is urging prompt action from the Department of Justice, expressed concern about the impact of the individual's actions on 'us', the Latino community.
Furthermore, due to the individual's actions and the subsequent raids, several Latino leaders and members of the League of United Latin American Citizens feel intimidated and their right to vote threatened, raising concerns about voter suppression against the community.
