ELECTION RESULTS: Amendments pass, Bonds defeated

Sheldon bonds fail; Moya re-elected Mayor of Galena Park

HARRIS COUNTY – Voters went to the polls last Saturday, and voted on the few issues that were on the ballot. Two state constitution amendments, that lower property taxes, easily passed. Statewide, 1,300,000 votes were cast, with 85% approving the amendments.

Other ballot items were local, including two bond issues in Huffman, that were defeated by over 60% of the electorate that voted, and a Sheldon bond issue that was defeated by more than 65% of those who voted. Obviously the electorate was not in a mood to spend money that might mean higher taxes for them. Both districts had stated that they needed the money to build or improve facilities to accommodate student growth.

In Crosby, three directors for Newport MUD were elected: Earl Boykin, Deborah Florus, and DeLonne Johnson. Johnson won by only 3 votes over her opponent, John Webb by a count of 128 to 125.

GALENA PARK

In a closely watched election for Mayor and City Council, the incumbent Mayor Esmeralda Moya and her slate of four city commissioners were reelected. For months this administration had drawn criticism on social media and the attention of voters and the press. However, when given the chance to change, the actual number of voters that went to the polls was about half the number that voted 4 years ago, in 2020 when Moya was elected.

Vote Totals are as follows:

MAYOR
Esmeralda Moya 598
Mark Groba 16
Maricela Serna 353

POSITION #1
Zenaida Granados 566
Maria Barraza 373

POSITION #2
Cecilio Almazan 326
Jorge Rodriguez 615

POSITION #3
Veronica Garcia 603
Martha Cantu-Perez 342

POSITION #4
Hilda Barrientos 581
Rosemary Reed Coreathers 367

GALENA PARK ISD

Two trustee positions were open on the board, and voters chose Ramon Garza, unopposed, and Linda Clark Sherrard, with 599 votes who defeated Juan Flores with 106 votes and Jeff Miller with 416 votes.

NEXT: RUN-OFF

On May 24 voters will be asked to return to the polls, to determine winners in elections that took place in the March Primary and require a run-off. Early voting for this will starts May 16th.

NEXT ELECTION MAY 24

Texas voters overwhelmingly approved two proposed amendments on May 7 that will provide property tax relief to homeowners.

Nearly 85% of voters supported Proposition 2, which raises the homestead exemption from $25,000 to $40,000 starting this year. That will save the average homeowner about $175 in school property taxes.

Another proposition that easily passed corrects an oversight to a 2019 bill passed by the Legislature, which didn’t apply to homeowners who are disabled or 65 and older, because their school taxes were already frozen.

The state will reimburse school districts for tax funding lost by both propositions, with the Legislative Budget Board anticipating the amount at more than a half-billion dollars, according to the Statesman.

Meanwhile, Texas voters get another opportunity to cast ballots starting May 16 in primary runoff elections slated for both Republican and Democratic candidates. The election is May 24, with early voting running until May 20.

Statewide runoff races are slated for attorney general and land commissioner in both parties, lieutenant governor and comptroller in the Democratic race, and railroad commissioner on Republican side of the ticket.

More information can be found about particular races at votetexas.gov. Voters who cast ballots in one party’s primary cannot vote in the other party’s runoff election. However, voters who did not cast ballots in the primary can vote in either party’s runoff.