Voters in The Woodlands area have several races in which to cast their ballots May 7. In addition to contested races in municipal utility districts in The Woodlands area and in Magnolia ISD, the city of Shenandoah also has elections for mayor and a position on City Council. The emergency services district serving Creekside Park in The Woodlands, Harris County ESD 11, is also holding an election.
Turnout in May elections is typically low, said Steve Leakey, president of the nonprofit Voter Awareness Council in Montgomery County. He urged voters to locate their area polling places and become familiar with the races on the county sample ballots.
"The VAC's position is that every election is important, and every elected office is important," Leakey said. "We suggest everyone download their sample ballot, do their research and vote a complete ballot."
Among the races this year are contested races in all of the MUDs under the management of The Woodlands Water Agency as well as the MUD bridging Harris and Montgomery counties in The Woodlands, Harris-Montgomery Counties MUD 386.
According to information from The Woodlands Water Agency, early voting and election day voting for the MUDs will occur at locations designated by the Montgomery County elections administrator. The Montgomery County elections website includes early voting and election day polling locations. Voters in Harris County can refer to www.harrisvotes.org.
Early voting will be held April 25-30 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and May 2-3 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Election day voting will be held from 7 a.m.-7 p.m. May 7.
Jim Stinson, general manager of The Woodland Water Agency, which manages the MUDs in The Woodlands aside from MUD 386, said a variety of factors have led to increased candidate interest for the elections. MUD boards set the water and sewer tax rates within the district.
"We know the ongoing community debate over groundwater and surface water has heightened public awareness on our future water sources," he said in an email. However, the wholesale groundwater and surface water rates for the region are set by the San Jacinto River Authority.
Additional information about voting in Montgomery County can be found at https://elections.mctx.org.
The following is a list of candidates in elections in The Woodlands area. Incumbents, which are the individuals currently serving in the positions, are indicated with as asterisk (*).
City of Shenandoah
Mayor
Ron Raymaker*
Magnolia ISD board of trustees
Position 1
Dacia Owens*
Jordan Miles (withdrew from race)
Irma Dunmire
Position 2
Sonja Ebel*
Gary Blizzard*
Montgomery County
The Woodlands Municipal Utility District No. 1 board of directors
Two positions open
MUD 36 board of directors
Two positions open
Vince Fredrick
Sharon DeMarsais
John Yoars*
Michael Meece
Mamie Polk*
MUD 39 board of directors
Julie Davids
Sean Apostalo
MUD 46 board of directors
Three positions open
Thomas Schwarzkopf
MUD 47 board of directors
Two positions open
Hugh H. Connett
MUD 60 board of directors
Three positions open
Bob Lux*
Donna McAleer
W. Richard Stromatt*
MUD 67 board of directors
Three positions open
Roland Johnson*
Ann Perry
Harris-Montgomery Counties MUD 386 board of directors
Two positions open
Penny Lynn Prater
Marcus J. Allen
Christopher Boyer*
Harris County
ESD 11 board of directors
