Judge Refuses to Stop Election of Water District Board

LOS ANGELES —  A federal judge on Friday refused to grant a preliminary injunction sought by federal authorities to halt a November water district election in the San Gabriel Valley.

The U.S. Justice Department has accused the Upper San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District of illegally diluting Latino voting strength in drawing its electoral boundaries. Latinos make up nearly half of the 791,000 voters in the district, but no Latino candidate has been elected to the five-member board in its 40-year history.

This year, 13 candidates--including several Latinos--are running for three of the open board seats, officials said.

As part of its lawsuit filed in July against the water wholesaler, the Justice Department sought to stop the election until a trial could resolve whether lines for the district’s five divisions should be redrawn.

But U.S. District Judge A. Howard Matz denied the injunction, saying it would be costly, unfair to the electorate and ultimately keep the “allegedly unlawful incumbents” in their offices for another 18 months.

Matz said that holding a special election would cost more than half a million dollars and would probably be underwritten by water customers.

The judge wrote that the current candidates had already paid $550 fees to run and begun to organize their campaigns and raise funds. “To enjoin the election now would be unfair to the candidates and their supporters,” he wrote.

A spokeswoman for the Justice Department said the case is not weakened by the ruling. “We believe our case is strong and we look forward to proving it in court,” Kara Peterman said.