The U.S. Department of Justice has sued the city of Euclid seeking to block elections until the election process is restructured to give black candidates a better chance at holding public office.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Cleveland, alleges that in the present system, it is virtually impossible for a black candidate to get elected, as majority whites vote as a bloc in an at-large election setup.
"The Justice Department believes today's lawsuit is necessary to preserve the voting rights of African-American citizens in the city of Euclid," Assistant Attorney General Wan J. Kim, who heads up the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, said in a news release.
The city's population of 53,000 is 30% black, but no black person has been elected to a local seat.
At issue is the City Council voting system. Each of four wards elects a representative; four additional council members and the council president are elected citywide. In 2005, all five citywide office holders were from the same ward.
Kim warned city officials in a letter in March that he was prepared to sue.
The lawsuit claims black candidates would fare better if the city were split into eight wards, each electing its own council member. That would create at least two majority-black districts, according to the lawsuit.
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