The Pedernales Electric Cooperative board of directors approved the ballot for the 2017 election during an April 17 meeting, and six cooperative members are running for two director positions in districts 2 and 3. The PEC provides electricity to more than 291,000 customers in Central Texas, including residents in Cedar Park and Leander. Its seven districts cover 8,100 square miles, which spans from Lampasas to Bulverde.LCP_04-17-43-2

In August 2016, the PEC board of directors voted to create single-member districts, so members may now vote only for directors who represent their geographic district. Previously, any PEC member could vote for representatives in any of the seven districts.

Directors have a four-term limit, and each term is three years, according to the PEC. They receive a monthly salary of $3,000 if they attend 75 percent of scheduled meetings.

This spring two candidates are running for the board in District 2, which includes parts of Leander and northern Williamson County, and four candidates are running in District 3, which includes portions of Cedar Park and Austin. William D. “Bill” Boggs and Emily Pataki are running in District 2, and Randy R. Klaus, Judy Lawler Pokorny, Eric Stratton and Matthew S. Weldon are running for the seat in District 3.

The PEC’s qualifications and elections committee reviewed the six who applied to be candidates and verified their eligibility, said Caroline Tinsley, the change management and communications editor with the PEC. The committee forwarded a final list of applicants to the board for review, and the board approved the ballot at the April 17 board meeting.

PEC members are invited to learn more about the candidates at a forum Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at its headquarters in Johnson City. Board candidates will be given five minutes to present their views and will take questions from PEC members in a moderated format. Videos of the event will be posted online at pec.coop/election.

More election coverage can be found online at communityimpact.com/vote.