Election Results: Texans like their constitutional amendments.
All 7 constitutional amendments passed with overwhelming support. A reminder of what the amendments will do:
Proposition 1: Property tax reduction; 86.47% in favor
Proposition 2: Disabled veteran tax exemptions count for spouses; 91.41% in favor
Proposition 3: Repeals capital living requirement for statewide officials; 66.06% in favor
Proposition 4: Professional sports teams’ charitable foundations can have more raffles; 69.42% in favor
Proposition 5: Small counties can perform private road maintenance; 82.75% in favor
Proposition 6: Guarantees Texans the right to fish and hunt; 81.03% in favor
Proposition 7: Dedicates more state revenue to the State Highway Fund; 83.22% in favor
In the House District 118 Special Election (San Antonio) to replace Rep. Joe Farias who retired shortly after the legislative session, John Lujan (R) and Tomas Uresti are headed to a runoff. Here is a breakdown of the returns:
Anthony Alcoser (D): 12.67%
Robert A. Casias (R): 5.32%
Gabe Farias (D): 18.80%
Michael Holdman (R): 13.31%
*John Lujan (R): 28.21%
*Tomás Uresti (D): 22.36%
Houston Mayoral Race and HERO
Houston’s Equal Rights Ordinance (HERO) was defeated by a large margin, with 61% voting against the ordinance. In a field of 13 candidates for Mayor of Houston, Sylvester Turner (27%) and Bill King (25%) are headed to a runoff. Sheriff Adrian Garcia came in a distant third (17%).
Bond Election for Travis County Courthouse
In an extremely close vote, the bond for construction of a new county courthouse failed by 1,000 votes out of 73,000, a margin of less than 2%. To read election night returns…
Texas Medicaid has a new director.
Gary Jessee, has been named Texas’ new state Medicaid director, replacing Kay Ghahremani who retired last week after 20 years of service to the state. Most recently, Jessee served as the Medicaid/CHIP Division’s chief deputy director for program operations. To read more…
State Auditor retiring.
John Keel, a familiar face in state government, has announced that he will retire as Texas State Auditor effective January 4, 2016. To read more…
Blue Bell returns to North Texas.
Phase 2 of resumed Blue Bell distribution includes North Texas, Waco, and central and southern Oklahoma. With flavors limited to 5—Buttered Pecan, Cookies n’ Cream, Dutch Chocolate, Homemade Vanilla, and The Great Divide—Is your favorite flavor still being produced? To read more…
Only in Austin…
How do you like your martini—shaken or stirred? Thursday, November 5th at 5:30 p.m., The Bullock Museum is celebrating the premiere of the new Bond movie “Spectre,” with a special cocktail party featuring 007’s beverage of choice, Loteria, prize giveaways, and Bond trivia. The event is open to ticket holders. Hurry and grab your tickets to see James Bond on the IMAX!