With the upcoming Nov. elections approaching quickly we will soon begin to see our mailboxes filled again with campaign literature from the candidates.
The local chapter of the League of Women voters, LWV-Hill Country, has launched new efforts to register voters in five counties in the area.
LWV-Hill Country has received a grant from the national LWV organization to fund efforts to add voters to local rolls before the deadline to register at 5 p.m. on October 11.
Last week Kerr County Elections Department director Nadene Alford said that the number of new voters registering has not significantly increased yet, but her office is ready to process applications when they arrive. People also have the option of registering to vote when they apply for or renew their Texas driver license, but the Oct. 11 deadline applies to them also.
“Persons wanting to register to vote can come by our office in the courthouse, download an application from the votetexas.gov, sign it and mail it to our office (Kerr County Tax Assessor/Collector Office, 700 Main Suite 124, Kerrville, TX 78028), but be sure to put either a driver license number or Social Security number on the form,” Alford said.
If you have recently moved to Kerr County and have been registered to vote in another county in Texas, you must register to vote in Kerr County either in person or you can update on the votetexas.gov website.
For more information on registering to vote or changing address on current voter registration contact the elections office at (830) 792-2242.
You can also go to votetexas.gov and check your information and check the list of offices you can vote for in the next election.
The color of the current Texas Voter Registration Card is blue. Your voter residence is listed on the left side and the list of offices that you are eligible to vote is in the boxes on the right side. Registered voters in Pct. 1 and Pct. 4 need to check their voter card to be sure you note changes made in the two precincts after redistricting based on the 2020 census. Some voters moved from Pct. 1 to Pct. 4 and some in Pct. 4 were moved to Pct 1.
In addition to registering to vote there are requirements for voting by mail.
“Applications for voting by mail must be received in our office by Friday, Oct. 28,” Alford said.
Early voting begins Oct. 24 and goes through Nov. 4.
Early voting will be a the Hill Country Youth Event Center/Happy State Bank Expo-Hall on Hwy. 27 in Kerrville and at the Ingram ISD Administration Building on College Street in Ingram. Voting will be from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday thru Friday for the two weeks of early voting, plus an additional time on Saturday, Oct. 29 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at both locations.
Training by the staff in the Kerr County Elections Department has been provided to the LWV volunteers for many years. LWV volunteers then become Volunteer Deputy Registrars and can help sign up new voters.
“We are planning a last-minute opportunity for persons to register before Tuesday, Oct. 11,” said Bunny Bond, Voters Service Coordinator for the local LWV chapter.
LVW members also distribute voter guides published by the state organization prior to statewide elections and local elections.
“The state voter guides will be later than usual this year, but hopefully will be available soon. We are in the process of getting the local election voter guide completed this week,” said Bond.
The local League of Women Voters chapter was formed in May 1979 in Kerrville to serve the citizens and voters of Kerr County and was known as League of Women Voters Kerr County.
In 2015 the chapter changed its name to League of Women Voters-Hill Country and members began to expand into surrounding counties. In the fall of 2017 they held their first forum for voters in Bandera County and, the following year, expanded into Gillespie County. At the request of voters in Blanco County, a LWV unit was established in 2019 followed in Feb. 2020 with a LWV unit established in Kendall County.
Now the LWV Hill Country chapter is active in all five counties and as the time nears for the Nov. 8 elections their efforts will increase to be sure every eligible voter has the opportunity to cast a vote in all local and state races plus any other issues on the ballots.
Contested elections on the Nov. 8 ballot that Kerr County voters need to become knowledgeable of include:
• U.S. Congress District 21 race between Republican Chip Roy and Democrat Claudia Zapata;
• Texas Senate District 24 race between Republican Pete Flores and Democrat Kathy Jones-Hospod;
• Texas House District 53 race between Republican incumbent Andrew Murr and Democrat Joe P. Herrera;
• Justice of the Peace Precinct 4 race between incumbent William (Bill) Ragsdale and write-in candidate Dwight Snider;
• Headwaters Groundwater Conservation District Place 4 race between incumbent “Jeepers” Ragsdale and Laurie Lowe.
• Contested school board elections in District 1 and District 2 in Comfort (both districts are both in Kendall and Kerr counties; Harper ISD has five candidates running for three seats on the board (Harper ISD includes residents in both Gillespie and Kerr counties); and Medina ISD Place 4 and Place 5 (Medina ISD includes residents of both Bandera and Kerr counties).
Additionally, all voters in Kerr County will be asked to approve three bond proposals on the Nov. 8 ballot totaling $27.5 million.
• Proposition A – $13.685 million relates to several projects related to the Kerr County
Courthouse and its grounds including renovation of a county-owned building on Earl Garrett and moving the tax office to that location, the building of a new West Kerr Annex on property purchased already by the county on Hwy. 39 in Ingram, and a storage facility on existing property on Spur 100;
• Proposition B - $8.065 million for improvements to the Hill Country Youth Exhibit Center’s existing indoor show arena which was built in 1981 and currently meets none of the required safety codes.
• Proposition C - $5.75 million for the construction of a new Kerr County Animal Control Facility off Spur 100 on property already owned by the county. The current property on Loop 534 can then be sold to offset part of the cost of the new facility.
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