What Should You Know About Midterm Elections?
November 7, 2022
The U.S will be holding the midterm elections on Tuesday, November 8. Midterm elections are held to elect the Texas House of Representatives, members of the senate, and to determine which political party will have the majority for the next two years. Voter registration closed on October 11, but already over 40 million mail-in and early-voting ballots were cast.
Champion students who turned 18 and registered before the deadline can vote on Tuesday; however, the candidates and propositions can be confusing for people who have never voted before.
The candidate elections for this year’s elections are:
Governor: Serves as the state’s chief executive officer and oversees the functions of the executive branch of government.
Greg Abbott (Incumbent) – Republican. In favor of: border control and gun rights. Disagrees with current immigration policies. He has held the spot of 48th governor since 2015.
Beto O’Rourke – Democrat. In favor of: banning assault weapons, “Medicare X” which offers Americans a government run-insurance, and reproductive rights. He is currently a member of the El Paso City Council and this will be his first time running for this position.
Lieutenant Governor: The state’s highest officer following the governor and assumes the role when the governor is out of state or incapacitated.
Dan Patrick (Incumbent) – Republican. In favor of: Gun rights, increased border security, and reducing franchise tax. He was first elected in 2014.
Mike Collier – Democrat. In favor of: Lowering property taxes, reproductive rights, and legalizing marijuana. This will be his second term running for this position.
US House District 21: U.S. House of Representatives represent a portion of their state and devote individual attention to requests from people of the district.
Chip Roy (Incumbent) – Republican. In favor of: private healthcare, border control, and reducing federal spending. He has held this position since 2019.
Claudia Zapata – Democrat. In favor of: affordable housing, universal healthcare, and small business support. This will be her first time running for District 21.
Attorney General: The top legal officers of their state or territory. They advise and represent their legislature and state agencies and act as the “People’s Lawyer” for the citizens.
Ken Paxton (Incumbent) – Republican. In favor of: states rights and the free-enterprise system. He has held the spot of the 51st attorney general since 2014.
Rochelle Garza – Democrat. In favor of: reproductive rights, immigration rights, and access to affordable health care. She was formerly a state attorney before running for election.
Agriculture Commissioner: Protects and promotes the agricultural industries in their state.
Sid Miller (Incumbent) – Republican. In favor of: The second amendment, abolishing abortion, and reforming property taxes in Texas. He has been the 12th commissioner of agriculture since 2014.
Susan Hays – Democrat. In favor of: Expanding Medicaid, water conservation, and legalizing marijuana. She was a Legislative Aide at the Texas Legislature and clerked at the Texas Supreme Court, but this is her first year running for this position.
Comptroller: Collects taxes, oversees the state treasury and forecasts the amount of money that’s available to legislators when they craft the state’s two-year budget.
Glenn Hagar (Incumbent) – Republican. In favor of: Tax cuts, gun rights, education funding. He has been comptroller since 2014.
Janet Dudding – Democrat. In favor of: Expanding Medicaid, reducing methane emissions on state-owned land, and legalizing marijuana. Dudding has never run for government office before.
Railroad Commissioner: Regulates the oil and gas industry.
Wayne Christian (Incumbent) – Republican. In favor of: Private property rights, free markets, and American energy dominance. Christian was first elected for this position in 2017.
Luke Warford – Democrat. In favor of: Reducing emissions, expanding Texas energy leadership, and water/air conservation. This will be Warford’s first term running for this position.
The propositions, which are motions like tax changes and public works, are:
Proposition A – “The issuance of not to exceed $20,000,000 of Kendall County, Texas, general obligation bonds for acquiring open space and conservation land and acquiring conservation easements on land for any authorized purposes, including to ensure its availability for recreational or open-space use or to protect wildlife habitat and the water quality of creeks, rivers and springs, and the levying of a tax in payment thereof.”
Proposition B – “Authorizing the creation of Kendall County Emergency Services District No. 1 and imposition of a tax not to exceed ten cents (.10 cents) on the one hundred dollars ($100.00) valuation for the support thereof.”
Want more information? Here’s a sample ballot for Boerne/Kendall County —
