The Dallas County Republican Party is asking election officials to remove Friendship-West Baptist Church from the county’s November 3 vote-center list because the church’s senior pastor, Frederick Douglass Haynes III, is the Democratic nominee for Texas’ 30th Congressional District.
Federal Election Commission records identify Haynes as a Democratic congressional candidate, and the church identifies him as its senior pastor of more than 40 years. Dallas County’s published election materials list the church at 2020 W. Wheatland Road as an Election Day vote center. The location has also served voters in prior elections.
Dallas County Republican Party Chairman Monty Montañez told Dallas Express that party officials had repeatedly raised concerns with the county Elections Department. According to Montañez, officials initially said the county elections administrator, district attorney and Texas secretary of state had reviewed the arrangement during the primary and found no violation. He also said the secretary of state later reopened its review ahead of the general election.
Dallas Express reported that it had not independently confirmed the claimed state review or whether Dallas County pays the church for serving as a polling location. The publication contacted the Elections Department, secretary of state, church and campaign but reported no responses clarifying those questions. The GOP’s conflict claim therefore remains an allegation, not an official finding.
Montañez argued that a county payment to a church whose pastor is a candidate could create an appearance of a conflict even if no law is violated. The party is calling for the location to be removed. Friendship-West describes itself as active in civic engagement and social change, while Haynes’ campaign highlights the church’s voter-education and civil-rights work.
Political activity by a church does not by itself establish that using the building as a vote center violates Texas election law. The article did not report evidence that campaigning occurred inside the polling place or that election procedures had been compromised.
The dispute is significant for election administration because Texas counties increasingly use countywide vote centers, making the selection and perceived neutrality of those locations important to public confidence. The unresolved questions are whether the arrangement complies with applicable law, whether any public payment creates a meaningful conflict, and what standard Dallas County uses when choosing facilities connected to candidates.