Election Day is March 1
Submitted by jcht2010 on
By Chris Lundstrom
Publisher/Editor
March 1 is right around the corner and that means Primary Election day. Registered voters who have not voted during the early voting period will make their way to polling places around Jackson County to cast their ballot for federal, state and local offices.
Local races in the Republican Primary election include tax assessor-collector and Pct. 1 commissioner. Monica Hyek Foster and Valerie Callaway are vying for the tax assessor-collector position. There is a 3-way race for Pct. 1 commissioner including incumbent Wayne Hunt and challengers Clinton Shefcik and Jimmy Lopez.
A highly contested district judge race is also on the Republican Primary ballot. Incumbent Judge Kemper Stephen Williams and Pink Dickens are competing for the 135th District Court judge position.
In addition to the presidential race, District 27 Congressman Blake Farenthold has drawn a challenger and voters will decide between Farenthold and challenger Gregg Deeb.
There are four propositions on the Republican ballot. These are non-binding issue proposals that help guide the party platform and provide insight into what voters think is important.
The text of each ballot proposition is below:
Proposition 1: Texas should replace the property tax system with an alternative other than an income tax and require voter approval to increase the overall tax burden.
Proposition 2: Texas cities and counties should be required to comply with federal immigration laws or be penalized by loss of state funds.
Proposition 3: Texas should prohibit governmental entities from collecting dues for labor unions through deductions from public employee paychecks.
Proposition 4: Texas and its citizens should strongly assert 10th Amendment Rights guaranteed by the US Constitution which states “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”
There are no contested races on the Democratic Party Primary ballot. At the federal level there is the presidential primary, three contenders for the U.S. Representative Dist. 27 currently held by Blake Farenthold (R). They are Paul (Roy) Barrera, Ray Madrigal and Wayne Raasch.
There are six referenda on the Democratic Primary ballot. They include:
Referendum 1: Should the Texas Legislature and the United States Congress pass an economic security and prosperity plan for families that includes higher incomes by raising the state minimum wage to a livable wage, passing the Paycheck Fairness Act to ensure equal pay for equal work, guaranteeing paid family leave to care for a child or ill loved one, fully funding public neighborhood schools, and making a debt-free community college education a reality for hardworking students?
Referendum 2: Should the Texas Legislature and the United States Congress pass criminal justice reform legislation that ensures equal justice throughout our society without respect to race, socioeconomic status, geographic location, or other factors unrelated to behavior, ensuring as well common sense policies to protect the rights of law enforcement officers, the community, and defendants in the criminal justice system?
Referendum 3: Should the Texas Legislature and the United States Congress encourage the transition to renewable, non-polluting energy as a means to slow down climate change and its impact on the planet?
Referendum 4: Should the United States Congress pass the new Voting Rights Advancement Act to protect all American voters?
Referendum 5: Should the Texas Legislature allow each public institution of higher education (not only private universities) to opt out of the ability to carry guns on campus?
Referendum 6: Should the United States Congress pass a just and fair comprehensive immigration reform solution that includes an earned path to citizenship for law-abiding immigrants and their children, keeps families together, protects DREAMers, and provides workforce solutions for businesses?
Sample ballots are available at the Jackson County Clerk’s office or online at www.co.jackson.tx.us and click on the voting and election information link.
Polling places will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and questions about voter registration can be answered at the tax office at 782-3473. Call the county clerk’s office at 782-3563 for all other questions on voting and elections.
A list of polling places can be found on Page 2A. Election results will be posted on the Herald-Tribune’s website after the polls close.
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