What happened: The debate over whether Midland voters should decide the name of Legacy High ended Aug. 12 when the MISD board voted 4-3 to revert the Lee name. Trustees have discussed sending the issue to the November ballot, but that plan never materialized.

Trustee Matt Friez pushed for a referendum and blamed Midland County officials for blocking it. During the meeting, he repeated that position, while county leaders said the law does not allow such an election.

Go deeper:

  • Friez’s comments: On July 12, Friez wrote on Facebook that a referendum would be “the fairest and most unifying path forward.” He accused the county attorney’s office of interference, saying, “Let’s call it what it is: woke, left-wing cultural Marxism trying to silence the people and impose an agenda from above.”

At the Aug. 12 meeting, Friez said he understood that the county first told board leadership that a ballot was possible, but county officials later objected. He called the decision “disrespectful not just to this board, but to the community at large.”

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  • The county’s response: Midland County released a statement refuting Friez’s claims. “The Texas Secretary of State has not approved putting the school name question on an election ballot,” the county said.

“There is over ninety years of precedent in Texas establishing that a governmental entity may not conduct an election without specific statutory authorization… There is no statutory authority for elections on school names, and Midland County will continue to follow the law…”

County Judge Terry Johnson added that MISD’s legal counsel informed Board President Brandon Hodges about this guidance, but seemingly did not relay the information to Friez.