DENTON COUNTY, Texas — Denton County voters are facing some important decisions for their local governments this election cycle.
Hundreds of candidates just in the Dallas-Fort Worth area alone have decided to run, with many local contests featuring five or more candidates each.
Some of the big races for folks in Denton County include the numerous city council seats open in cities across the county, including Dallas, Denton, Fort Worth, Frisco and Plano. Plus, cities like Fort Worth, Lewisville and Plano have mayoral spots up for grabs as well.
And, Plano has a very large bond election for voters to decide on, which includes about $364 million in potential city improvements.
With so many candidates running, it's quite possible plenty of local races will head to run-off elections sometime later this summer. Some jurisdictions require candidates to reach a majority of the vote, which is more than 50%, to outright win. With so many candidates in a single race, that can be hard to do. The top two vote-getters will head into a runoff typically if no one candidate gets the majority of the vote.
Below, WFAA has compiled a list of many of the bigger local races in Denton County, some information about Plano's bond election, and other general information voters should know before heading to polls.
Early voting starts April 19 and runs through April 27. Election Day is May 1.
How to check if you're registered
To be eligible to vote, you must be a U.S. citizen over 18 years old on Election Day. You also must have a valid Texas or federal photo ID to cast a ballot, although there are certain exemptions to that.
You must be registered in order to vote in Texas. You can check online to see if you are currently registered to vote.
Those who wish to vote by mail must submit their application for a mail-in ballot no later than April 20.
To vote by mail in Texas, you must be:
- 65 years or older
- disabled
- out of the county on Election Day and during early voting
- confined in jail
Ballots submitted by mail must be received by election workers by 7 p.m. on May 1, with a few exceptions.
Where do I vote? How to find your polling place
Denton County voters can visit any early voting location in the county during early voting, but on Election Day, they'll need to check what polling place they are assigned to. That precinct polling location will be where voters must cast their ballot on Election Day.
On May 1, polling places across Texas will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
What do I need to vote?
When you head to the polls, you need one of the following forms of ID to cast your vote.
- Texas Driver License issued by the Texas Department of Public Safety
- Texas Election Identification Certificate issued by DPS
- Texas Personal Identification Card issued by DPS
- Texas Handgun License issued by DPS
- United States Military Identification Card containing the person’s photograph
- United States Citizenship Certificate containing the person’s photograph
- United States Passport (book or card)
Your driver's license does NOT need to be REAL ID compliant, according to the Secretary of State's office.
The photo ID must be current, or, for voters under the age of 70, have not expired more than four years prior to voting. Those age 70 and older can use any expired photo ID that otherwise remains correct, no matter how long it has been expired.
Your address on your photo ID does not need to match the address you used to register to vote.
Don’t have one of those? Here are supporting forms of ID.
- a government document that shows the voter's name and an address, including the voter's voter registration certificate
- a current utility bill
- a bank statement
- a government check
- a paycheck
- a certified domestic (from a U.S. state or territory) birth certificate
- a document confirming birth admissible in a court of law which establishes the voter's identity (which may include a foreign birth document)
What's on my ballot?
Denton County voters can find a sample ballot specific to their address by visiting the county's elections website.
Below, WFAA has compiled a look at some of the noteworthy local races happening in Denton County this cycle. For more information about a candidate or a position, click on the hyperlink.
Place 1: Covers northeast section of the city
- Sem Habtemariam
- Sammy Isaiah
- Steve Babick (Incumbent and mayor pro tem)
Place 5: Covers northwest section of the city
- Nancy Cline
- Annette W. Reese
- Shani Dellimore Barrax
Place 7: Covers southeast section of the city
Carrollton Proposition L:
The city has a number of propositions listed on the May ballot, including Proposition L, which would allow the city council to restrict liquor sales.
The wording of the proposition is as follows:
"Shall the City Charter be amended by adding Section 10.16 to provide for the prohibition of the sale of liquor in residential districts of the City if so established by the City Council by Ordinance?"
Councilmembers are elected by the city at-large and represent the entire city.
Place 2:
- Brianna Hinojosa-Smith (Incumbent)
- Raghib Majed
Place 3:
- Don Carroll
- Meghan Shoemaker
- Davin Bernstein
Place 4:
Place 6:
Place 12: Covers very northern portion of the city that lies along Denton, Dallas and Collin Counties near the Dallas North Tollway. Click here to see the districts on a map.
- Elva Curl
- Cara Mendelsohn (Incumbent)
District 1: Covers east-central portion of the city. Click here to see a map of the districts.
- Matt Irvine
- Birdia Johnson (Incumbent)
- Vicki Byrd
District 2: Covers downtown, eastern and northern sections of the city. Click here to see a map of the districts.
- Connie Baker (Incumbent)
- Daniel Clanton
- Brian Beck
District 4: Covers central southern portion of the city. Click here to see a map of the districts.
- John Ryan (Incumbent)
- Alison Maguire
District 7: Covers a stretch around the west-northwest section of the city. Click here to the see the districts on a map.
- Zeb Pent
- Cornelia (Connie) Cottrell
- Michele Stephens McNill
- Leonard Firestone
- Lee Henderson
- Miguel Zamora
- Jake Wurman
- Irvin (Tee) Thomas
- Joseph Lockhart Jr.
- Morris Curlee Jr.
Councilmembers are elected by the city at-large and represent the entire city.
Place 1:
Community Impact Newspaper held a Q&A with the two candidates. To read their thoughts, click here.
Place 3:
Community Impact Newspaper held a Q&A with the four candidates. To read their thoughts, click here.
- Tiffanie Fowler
- Delia Parker-Mims
- TJ Gilmore
- Timothy M. Friebel, Jr.
Councilmembers are elected by the city at-large and represent the entire city.
Place 3:
District 5: Covers northern section of the city near Paloma Creek. Click here to see a map of the districts.
- Geoff Gray
- Jamell Johnson
- Von Gipson
- Jeremy Lukas
- Jack Gregg (Gregg was listed on Denton County's ballot, but the Little Elm Journal reports he has dropped out of the race.)
Councilmembers are elected by the city at-large and represent the entire city.
Place 2:
- Anthony Ricciardelli (Incumbent, deputy mayor pro tem)
- Steve Lavine
Place 4:
- Vidal Quintanilla
- Justin Adcock
- Kayci Prince (Incumbent, mayor pro tem)
- Nassat Parveen
Place 7:
Place 8:
Plano Bond Propositions: Total of ~$364 million
Plano has a number of bonds up for a vote as a part of its 2021 Bond Referendum. Below are brief explanations of how much each proposition within the referendum will cost and what they are for. For a more detailed look at the city's proposals, click here.
Proposition A: $231 million in bonds for street improvements
Proposition B: $81.935 million in bonds for park and recreational facilities
Proposition C: $15.9 million in bonds for improvements to Tom Muehlenbeck Recreation Center
Proposition D: $27.14 million in bonds for public safety facilities
Proposition E: $5.5 million in bonds for improvements to existing municipal facilities
Proposition F: $2.49 million in bonds for the city's library facilities
