Lyndon Olson Sr., 80; Won High Court Case on ‘One Man, One Vote’
Lyndon Olson Sr., 80, a lawyer who successfully argued a case in 1968 before the U.S. Supreme Court that extended the principle of “one man, one vote†to local governments, died Tuesday of a heart attack at his home in Waco, Texas, his family said.
Remembered for his gentility and even temper, Olson appeared before the Supreme Court in Avery vs. Midland County. The high court decided that the makeup of local governments must reflect the population within them, just as the court had previously required of congressional and state districts.
Olson and his brother, Bill, represented then-Midland Mayor Hank Avery, whose city had the majority of Midland County residents but was represented by one of four county commissioners. The other three represented rural oilmen and ranchers.
A World War II veteran born in Waco, Olson was president of the Waco Independent School District board during integration and was once president of the city’s chamber of commerce.
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