Republican nominee for Railroad Commissioner Bo French is demanding that “mosques with direct connections to Islamic jihad and terrorism” be removed from Dallas County’s list of November polling locations.
In a letter sent Friday, French accused Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins and Dallas County Commissioners of “efforts to suppress the Christian and Jewish vote in the November election.”
“Our laws prohibit the intimidation of voters,” said French. “As such, you must ensure that no decision you make regarding the selection of polling locations intimidates voters and thus denies them of their constitutional right to vote.”
“Many Jewish and Christian voters do not feel safe entering a mosque to vote, especially one that has a long and documented track record of brazenly supporting radical Islamic terrorism and of calling for the end of Western Civilization,” according to French.
Among the three Dallas County mosques chosen as polling places, French singled out the Islamic Association of North Texas (IANT) as “the most concerning.”
French noted that Yusuf Ziya Kavakçi, who was a resident scholar and imam at IANT, spoke at a 2004 “Tribute to Great Islamic Visionary” celebrating the late Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Khomeini.
Kavakçi was also a founding member of the Islamic Tribunal, Texas’ first Sharia court. Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton have recently initiated formal investigations into the Islamic Tribunal for violations of the law.
French also stated that IANT instructs youth in the teachings of Sayyid Qutb, “the Muslim Brotherhood jihadist who inspired Osama bin Laden.”
French is not the only outspoken proponent of removing mosques from the polling sites list.
Williamson County GOP Chair Michelle Evans said in an X post on Saturday that she urged “our Commissioners Court to remove [the Islamic Center of Brushy Creek (ICBC)] as a voting site in November.”
“The ICBC has a questionable recent history of not only minimizing the murder of Israeli civilians on October 7, 2023, but also expressing its support – in writing – for the Council on American Islamic Relations in 2024,” said Evans.
“As you may be aware, CAIR has been designated as a foreign terrorist organization by Governor Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton sued the organization earlier this year to stop its groups from operating in our state.”
Evans also included a screenshot of a statement by Williamson County Democratic Chair Kim Collins Gilby stating that “Islamophobia has no place in Williamson County,” seeming to contrast the concerns expressed by French, Evans, and others against the Christian value of “loving our neighbors.”
“What happened to loving our neighbors? What happened to treating one another with dignity and respect?”
“Let me be clear,” said French in his letter. “By choosing mosques with direct connections to Islamic jihad and terrorism as a vote center in the November election, you are engaging in voter suppression and breaking your commitment to your constituents.”
Texas officials have expressed ongoing concern regarding possible Islamic extremism and cultural conflict in the state.
In late August, U.S. Rep. Chip Roy (R–Austin) asked three federal agencies to investigate a planned Bexar County Islamic community with connections to a designated foreign terrorist organization. The community will be situated half an hour from a military base.
IANT and ICBC have not responded to Texas Scorecard‘s requests for comment.
