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It’s Election Day in Texas, and voters heading to the polls across the state will be asked whether they support eight proposed changes to the state’s Constitution.
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There are no statewide elected officials on the ballot this time around — they’re all up for reelection next year, with the exception of some Supreme Court justices — but voters in different parts of the state may be asked to weigh in on local candidates and ballot proposals.
For example, voters in the San Antonio area will be asked to choose a new House representative to send to the Legislature. And in Austin, voters are being asked whether they support a measure to compel the city to drastically increase the ranks of its police force.
Check what’s on your local ballot through VOTE411.org or by visiting your county’s website.
Read more of our elections coverage here:
- The proposed constitutional amendments were passed as bills during this year’s legislative sessions but require voter approval. The eight amendments include extending property tax exemptions for military families, a measure that would allow residents in nursing homes to designate someone who can never be denied visitation — even during a pandemic-related shutdown, and changes to the eligibility requirements for judges. Read up on the constitutional amendments here, and see endorsements from Texas newspapers and partisan organizations.
- San Antonio voters will weigh in on a special House election pitting Republican John Lujan against Democrat Frank Ramirez. The left-leaning seat was previously held by Rep. Leo Pacheco, D-San Antonio, who vacated it earlier this year. Lujan briefly held the seat in 2016; Ramirez is a former staffer for the San Antonio City Council and at the Texas Legislature. The race has garnered outsized attention, as Republicans hope to flip it as part of their new South Texas offensive.
- Prop A in Austin is one of the most watched local ballot measures in the state. The measure asks whether voters want to mandate an increase in police officers. It comes as a response to Austin officials cutting the department’s budget last year amid calls from civil rights groups to reduce police spending and nationwide protests over police brutality. However, council members reversed the cuts to the police budget this year, and it now sits at a record $442 million.