The deadline for Texas voters to register for the upcoming November 5 constitutional amendment election is Monday.
Voters will see 10 proposed amendments on the ballot and potentially some municipal races, contingent on where they live.
Amendments being brought to the voters include a proposal aimed at banning a state income tax, another that would devote sales taxes on sporting goods to Texas parks and historic sites and a proposal to allow one person to hold more than one office as a municipal judge simultaneously.
Residents of Alamo, Edcouch, Edinburg, La Joya and Weslaco will see contested races for municipal positions on their ballot.
ALAMO
Diana Martinez and Trinidad “Trino” Medina will compete for the position of mayor of Alamo in the November election. Joseph Sweet will run against Pedro “Pete” Morales for the post of commissioner place 2, while Michael P. Benedetti, Maria Del Pilar Garza and Lora “LJ” Gioeni compete for the seat of commissioner place 4.
Additionally, there will be a special election for a city commissioner position, with Oscar “Okie” Salinas and Joel Casas running to fill the slot.
EDCOUCH
Edcouch residents will see two contested races on the ballot along with one uncontested race.
Fred Borrego Jr. and Virginio “Virgil” Gonzalez Jr. will both be running for mayor, while Carlos Castillo and John Chapa vie for the position of alderman place 3. Robert Gutierrez will run for alderman place 4 unopposed.
EDINBURG
Voters from Edinburg will see Juan “Johnny” Garcia, Carlos Jasso, Marc Roque and Deanna “Coach” Dominguez run against each other for the position of councilmember place 3. David Torres and David White will compete for council member place 4, while Alma Garza will challenge Toribio “Terry” Palacios for the position of municipal court judge.
LA JOYA
La Joya voters will see several names on the ballot. Fito Salinas, Isidro Casanova and Jaime Gaitan will all be running for the position of mayor. Daniel Flores Jr., Roger Hernandez and
Sylvia Cerda Oxford will be competing for commissioner place 2, while Dalia Arriaga, Laura Mendiola Macias and Aurora Ruiz face off for the seat of commissioner place 4.
WESLACO
Weslaco residents will see one contested race on the ballot, with Alfredo “Duff” Castañeda challenging David Suarez for the position of mayor. Additionally, Leticia “Letty” Lopez will run for Commissioner District 5 and Josh Pedraza will run for Commissioner District 6 unopposed.
As of mid-September, 370,668 voters had registered to vote in Hidalgo County.
Residents of Hidalgo County that are U.S. citizens and 18 years of age on the day of the election are eligible to vote. To register, residents must not have been declared mentally incompetent by a court of law, and if the resident is a felon, they must have discharged their sentence or been pardoned.
Voter registration applications are available at the Hidalgo County Elections Department at 101 S. 10th Ave. in Edinburg, which will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday. Applications are also available at DPS offices and at public libraries.
To verify registration, voters can call the Hidalgo County Voter Registration Office at (956) 318-2570 or check the Texas Secretary of State’s website.
