Welcome to Border Voters, a weekly rundown on the most important information voters in the Rio Grande Valley need to know about their access to the ballot box and fair representation.

Transcript of episode: By now, you’ve probably seen the news that more than 50 Texas Democrats walked out of the state’s special session and left to D.C. With our voting rights at stake, legislators had no other choice but to make this drastic move to prevent bad laws from passing.

This historic walkout includes four legislators from the Rio Grande Valley: Rep. Armando Martinez, Bobby Guerra, Eddie Lucio III, and Alex Dominguez. These elected officials understood that border voters would be among the most impacted if these anti-voter bills passed, so they left no options on the table.

Now, they’re advocating in D.C. urging Congress to act quickly. That way, no one in Texas or any part of the country has to worry about their right to vote.

Unfortunately, border voters are no strangers to attacks on our access to the ballot box. Throughout history, bad laws have tried to keep Black and brown voters from the polls.

Just like the rest of the U.S., people of color in the Rio Grande Valley have had to fight for fair and equal representation. In fact, Rep. Bobby Guerra of McAllen tweeted that he still has a copy of his parent’s poll tax receipt to remind him how “fragile” and “sacred” voting rights are. That’s why he walked out of the special session and left for D.C.

The reason these legislators were able to do this historic walkout is thanks to grassroots organizers and advocates. We paved the way for our elected officials to do whatever it takes.

If you want to organize with LUPE to protect voting rights in the Rio Grande Valley, send us a message or visit lupenet.org

Border Voters is created by La Unión del Pueblo Entero (LUPE). For press or general inquiries, contact johnmichael@lupenet.org and danim@lupenet.org.