Some background
House Bill 3546, which became law in June, allows school boards to hold their elections in November alongside the general election. Trustees unanimously approved the change, with board President Cameron Bryan citing improved voter accessibility and reduced costs for the district.
“Holding elections in November allows the district to share election costs with state and federal elections, reducing or even eliminating the expense of conducting a stand-alone May election,” Bryan said. “November elections offer more polling locations; in May we only have one, and that’s town hall.”
Trustees that would be up for reelection in May will get an additional six months added to their term to accommodate the new November election date, CISD Executive Communications Director Jeff Brady said at the meeting.
What else?
The board also moved to change the election method to from a plurality to a majority vote. A plurality vote allows whoever gets the most votes to win, even if the candidate earned less than 50% of the vote. For majority votes, the winner must win at least 50% of the vote, Brady said.
If no candidate receives more than 50%, the board will call for a runoff election between the two candidates that received the most votes, the policy states.
Looking ahead
The general uniform election in Tarrant County is scheduled for Nov. 3, according to the county elections department website.
