Ballot propositions K and J still look to fail; proposition F too close to call
With updated figures from Hays County still coming in, San Marcos city charter propositions K and J still look poised to fail, and proposition F became too close to call.
As of 11:55 p.m. Nov. 2, proposition K had 1,935 votes against it, or 53.16% and proposition J had 2,522 votes against, or 68.27%.
Proposition F had 1,839 votes for and against at 50.00%.
As of press time, 11.8% of registered voters—or 18,259 ballots—were counted in Hays County.
Original Post:
Voters in San Marcos had 13 city charter amendments to vote on Nov. 2, and preliminary results show all but propositions K and J passed with various amounts of support.
Proposition A reorganized the order of the city’s statement of goals to be organized by people, places, environment, economy and public services. It received 2,362 votes, or 76.19% in favor and 738 votes against, or 23.81%.
Proposition B establishes term limits for council members for any regular election held after November 2022. They will not be able to hold elected office for two years after serving three consecutive terms in office other than mayor. It passed with 2,565 votes in favor, or 79.63% of the vote and 656 votes against.
Proposition C establishes term limits for the mayor. After four consecutive terms, the incumbent would be barred from running for reelection for two years. That passed with 2,607 votes, or 80.89%.
Proposition D requires that every council meeting agenda provides for a citizen comment period and a question and answer session with the press and public, a practice the council currently employs on their agendas. This proposition makes it law and passed with 2,925 votes, or 90.47% of the vote.
Proposition E lowers the threshold for the city council to remove a city manager, from five council members voting in favor to four. That measure passed with 1,752 votes, or 55.41%.
Proposition F removes the requirement for a city council to approve a city manager’s appointment of assistant city managers. That passed with 1,577 votes, or 50.51% of the vote.
Proposition G also removes city council approval from staff hirings. The city clerk no longer must put forth assistant clerks before the council. That passed with 1,680 votes, or 53.98%.
Proposition H changed the residency requirement for the city clerk—allowing them to live within Hays County. Previously they were required to live within city limits. That passed with 1,898 votes, or 60.18%.
Proposition I removed the requirement for city council approval of municipal court clerks and assistant clerks. That passed with 1,580 votes, or 51.30% of the vote.
Proposition J would have removed the residency requirement for the appointment of a presiding judge. That proposition did not pass. It received 1,004 votes, or 31.68%.
Proposition K would have removed the requirement that city council approve the city attorney’s appointment of assistant city attorneys. The measure received 1,459 votes, or 47.26% of the vote.
Proposition L added a provision that no action of the planning and zoning commission can be enforced without a vote of five or more members. That passed with 2,490 votes, or 79.78% of the vote.
Proposition M requires the charter review commission to make a final recommendations report and require a designated member or the chair of the commission to present the report to city council. That measure passed with 2,822 votes, or 91.12% of the votes.
Voter turnout for all of Hays County totaled 12,893 ballots cast out of 155,158 registered voters, or 8.3%.
All results are unofficial until canvassed.
Visit our online Voter Guide for all local election results in your community. Community Impact Newspaper will continue to update this story as votes come in.
