Category: Local
-
Second recount for $569 million Midland Independent School District bond happening this week
On November 5, 2019, Midland Independent School District voters in Midland County, Texas, voted on a $569 million bond to build new facilities and improve existing schools. According to the first count of votes, the measure had failed by 25 votes, triggering a manual recount of paper ballots, which flipped the results to show the…
-
Four Oregon public school employees sue union over resignation restrictions
On Dec. 5, four Oregon public school employees filed suit in U.S. District Court alleging that their union has unconstitutionally denied their resignation requests, continuing to collect dues against their wishes. Who are the parties to the suit? Plaintiffs Dori Yates, Claudia Strickland, Tonya Sevilla, and Linda Newton work for Hillsboro United School District. They…
-
Four partisan changes in 31 big-city mayoral elections in 2019
Thirty-one mayoral elections in the 100 largest cities were held in 2019. Four partisan changes took place. Democrats gained three mayorships, two from Republicans and one from an independent. Republicans won one seat held by an unaffiliated mayor. In 20 of the 31 cities, the incumbent was Democratic at the start of 2019. Six incumbents were…
-
Incumbent Sylvester Turner defeats Tony Buzbee in Houston mayoral election
Incumbent Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner won re-election Saturday. He received 56% of the vote to former Texas A&M Board of Regents member Tony Buzbee’s 44% with 100% of precincts reporting. Turner was first elected in 2015. In 2019, he campaigned on what he said were the accomplishments of his first term, including balancing the city’s…
-
Blueford-Daniels and Allen win HISD runoff elections
Runoff elections for the District II and District IV open seats on the Houston Independent School District (HISD) school board were held Saturday, December 14, since no candidate in those districts received more than 50% of the vote during the November 5 general election. Katherine Blueford-Daniels defeated John Gibbs Sr. in District II, and Patricia…
-
Oklahoma City voters approve sales tax measure Tuesday
Oklahoma City voters approved a 1% sales tax measure by 71.7% to 28.3 percent in a special election Tuesday. The tax revenue was earmarked to fund the city’s Metropolitan Area Projects (MAPS) 4 program of proposed city infrastructure and facility projects. The MAPS 4 tax will expire in eight years and is expected to raise…
-
Recount decides Boston City Council seat by one vote
After a three-day recount, the Boston Election Commission announced on December 9 that the fourth at-large seat on the Boston City Council was won by Julia Mejia by a margin of one vote. The recount found that Mejia received 22,492 votes, and Alejandra St. Guillen received 22,491 votes. In the November 5 general election, unofficial…
-
North Carolina statewide filing deadline is December 20
The statewide filing deadline to run for elected office in North Carolina is on December 20, 2019. In North Carolina, prospective candidates may file for the following offices: • U.S. Senate • U.S. House • Governor • Lieutenant Governor • Attorney General • Secretary of State • Treasurer • Superintendent of Public Instruction • Auditor…
-
Tony Buzbee has cash lead over Sylvester Turner heading into the Houston mayoral runoff election
Houston mayoral candidate Tony Buzbee contributed an additional $2.3 million to his campaign, while incumbent Mayor Sylvester Turner raised $1.74 million, according to final fundraising reports before Saturday’s runoff election. At the end of the reporting period from Oct. 27 to Dec. 6, Buzbee had $597,624 cash on hand to Turner’s $524,420 on hand. Buzbee…
-
Runoff election for open seats on Houston ISD school board this Saturday against backdrop of state takeover
Runoff elections for the District II and District IV open seats on the Houston Independent School District (HISD) school board take place on December 14. The runoffs are taking place because no candidate received more than 50% of the vote during the November 5 general election. Katherine Blueford-Daniels and John Gibbs Sr. advanced in the…