On March 31, City Secretary Courtney Paz notified Boren she would not allow his name on the ballot.<\/p>\n
Her letter said, \u201cYou are ineligible to be a candidate for this office because you do not meet the minimum length of continuous residence in District 4.\u201d<\/p>\n
She cited state law \u2013 saying he needed to be resident of the district for six months.<\/p>\n
Boren said he moved from Lubbock County into what used to be his mother\u2019s house near 98th Street and Memphis Avenue two months ago \u2013 not six.<\/p>\n
But Boren also pointed to the City Charter, which demands a candidate be bona fide resident \u201cat the time of filing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Boren\u2019s attorney, Eric Opiela, filed a request for \u201cmandamus,\u201d the Latin word for command. It\u2019s quicker than a lawsuit because it bypasses the State District Court in Lubbock, but there\u2019s a catch.<\/p>\n
He must prove \u201ca clear abuse of discretion.\u201d<\/p>\n
The appeals court cannot investigate the facts. It can only settle an interpretation of the law. And that\u2019s what Boren claimed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe only issue is whether the City Charter or \u2026 [the] Election Code \u2026 governs,\u201d Boren\u2019s request said.<\/p>\n
Paz, in her rejection letter, cited section 141.001 of the Texas Election Code. Boren must be resident for six months.<\/p>\n
But Boren\u2019s attorney quoted 141.003, which said in part, \u201cDifferent age and residence requirements from those prescribed by Section 141.001 may be prescribed by a home-rule city charter \u2026 \u201d<\/p>\n
The city charter said, \u201cThe mayor and all councilmembers shall be bona fide residents within the City and within the applicable district at the time of filing for office and must continue to reside within the city and the applicable district during the term of office.\u201d<\/p>\n
Click here to read<\/a> the request for mandamus. <\/p>\n Boren\u2019s legal filing freely admitted, \u201cMandamus is an extraordinary remedy, available only in limited circumstances.\u201d<\/p>\n But he\u2019s trying to convince the Seventh Court it\u2019s the proper legal channel. His filing said the Texas Election Code allows an appeals court to hear just this kind of case.<\/p>\n \u201c[Boren] requests emergency consideration of his mandamus petition due to the short deadlines for having his name placed on the ballot,\u201d the request said.<\/p>\n The election is June 27 and the deadline to file as a candidate is April 27.<\/p>\n
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