This East Texas town hasn’t held a city council election in at least 18 years
In Kennard, City Council members have been appointed after previous members retired or died. Full Story
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Here’s how to vote in Texas’ May 28 runoff elections
The last day to register to vote is April 29. Early voting runs from May 20-24. Full Story
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![Graphic that reads, Local voter guide; above a collection of voting stickers.]()
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Texas school districts violated a law intended to add transparency to local elections
The Texas Tribune and ProPublica analyzed 35 Texas school districts that held trustee elections last fall and found none that posted all of the required campaign finance records. Full Story
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![A photo illustration shows a web search box with “BOARD ELECTION Campaign Finance Report” and “Page Not Found” over a photo of a Texas school building.]()
Credit: Photo illustration by ProPublica. Photo by Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune. -
Join us for a May 9 conversation about local news and democracy
We’ll talk about local news and news deserts in Texas, how communities are ipacted and what can be done to ensure Texans across the state have access to reliable local news. Full Story
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In one Texas county, elections officials shoulder new costs and burdens to appease skeptics
Brazos County election officials are responding to demands from skeptical residents by expanding hand counts and ordering special paper. Full Story
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![Texas voters cast their ballots during Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2023 in. Brazos County officials have taken extra measures to allay residents' fears about voting.]()
Credit: Photo illustration by Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Here’s how to vote in Texas’ May 4 local elections
Early voting runs from April 22-30. The last day to apply to vote by mail is April 23. Full Story
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![Graphic that reads, Local voter guide; above a collection of voting stickers.]()
Credit: The Texas Tribune -
Most 18-year-old Texans aren’t signed up to vote despite a law requiring voter registration in high schools
Voting is habit-forming and high schools are critical for starting that pattern. Full Story
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![On the left, Mihir Relan, 18, and Bianca Juarez, 18, registers to vote with the help of Jolt Initiative, a non-profit organization that increases the civic participation of Latinos in Texas, on Friday, April 5, 2024.]()
Credit: Joseph Bui for The Texas Tribune -
About 40% of Texas election administrators leave their job each presidential election cycle, report finds
Texas’ turnover rate has held steady at 40% since 2014. That’s slightly above the new national average. Full Story
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![Texans cast their votes at the start of early voting at the Metropolitan Multi-Service Center near downtown Houston on Monday, Oct. 22, 2018.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune -
In El Paso, apathy, alienation and discontent with candidates drives low voter turnout
Across this border city, which sees some of the state’s lowest voter turnout, many residents either didn’t know there was an election in March or had reasons for avoiding the polls. Full Story
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![Jorge Trujillo outside of the Memorial Park Senior Citizen Center vote center in El Paso on March 5, 2024.]()
Credit: Justin Hamel for The Texas Tribune -
Texas artists discuss art and democracy at Tribune event
During the panel conversation, the panelists talked about what inspires them to do the work they do and how they see their role in driving dialogue, activism and change. Full Story
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Republicans in a Texas county ditched technology and counted votes by hand. Here’s what happened.
The Texas Secretary of State and other election experts warned Gillespie County Republicans the process would be expensive, time-consuming and less reliable. Full Story
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![Gillespie County Elections Administrator Jim Riley speaks in the hallway of the Elections Office in Fredericksburg in the early morning of Mar. 6, 2024.]()
Credit: Maria Crane/The Texas Tribune -
I’m an elections reporter — and I just cast my first vote as a naturalized U.S. citizen
For a long time, I didn’t want to think or talk about elections or politics. That changed four years ago. Full Story
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![Votebeat reporter Natalia Contreras after voting for the first time in the United States on Feb. 25, 2024 in Corpus Christi.]()
Credit: Courtesy of Natalia Contreras/Votebeat -
Interfaith collaboration is vital to solving today’s massive challenges, community leaders say
During a conversation hosted in Houston by The Texas Tribune, panelists talked about the importance of building bridges among different faiths despite politics often causing divisions within institutions. Full Story
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How a fraction of voters decide who runs Texas
In Texas, who’ll run the state is usually decided in the primary. Because of gerrymandering and noncompetitive elections, few people participate. Full Story
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“A hornet’s nest”: How one Texas elections chief is doing his job amid ongoing conspiracy theories
Gillespie County Republicans are moving forward with a plan to count votes by hand during the 2024 primary election. Full Story
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![Gillespie County elections administrator, Jim Riley, holds results from the mock election as the ballot scanner releases the information on Feb. 6, 2024. Results were read to county residents following the mock election.]()
Credit: Maria Crane/The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: It took me three tries to register to vote in Texas — and I’m an elections reporter
Moments after I became a naturalized citizen in 2023, I registered to vote. Here’s what happened next. Full Story
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![Voter registration forms at a registration event in Austin, on Sept. 27, 2020.]()
Credit: Amna Ijaz/The Texas Tribune -
Once hesitant, Texas Republicans have united behind Donald Trump again
While polls once showed Trump and DeSantis tied in Texas, they now suggest the primary is all but over here. Trump leads Nikki Haley by a landslide. Full Story
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![Former president Donald Trump holds his first 2024 campaign rally in Waco, Texas on Mar. 25, 2023.]()
Credit: Leila Saidane/The Texas Tribune -
Texans discuss health of state’s democracy at Tribune event
Sessions at the event, held at the University of Houston-Downtown, tackled voter turnout, local governance, community news and more. Full Story
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Why this South Texas county closed half its early voting sites for 2024
A new law requires small counties to increase early voting days and hours — with no new money from the state. Full Story
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![The Kiva Hut Community Center in Taft, Texas on Jan 26, 2024. The community center has been the town’s only early voting site for years. It won’t be available for early voters in March or in November following the passage of House Bill 1217. The new law is forcing the San Patricio County elections administrator to shut down four early voting locations.]()
Credit: Natalia Contreras/Votebeat -
T-Squared: Sign up for The Texas Tribune’s Voting Help Desk
Try our new text messaging line that guides you through the voting process. Full Story
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Why some Texas election leaders are scrambling to find more polling locations, machines and workers
A new law requires counties that allow residents to vote at any polling location to increase the number of locations. Full Story
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![Eliza Smarr and her son Mason, 8, wait in line to cast their ballots on Election Day at the Blue Mound City Hall in Blue Mound on November 8, 2022.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
T-Squared: We the Texans
In 2024, we’ll be throwing the weight of The Texas Tribune behind listening closely to Texans about their lives and communities and how they engage in public life. Full Story
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![We the Texans]()
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What are the most important issues for you in 2024? We want to answer your questions
We’re committed to supporting Texans throughout the 2024 election. Share your thoughts by using the form below. Full Story
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![A view of the U.S. and Texas flags flown on the south side of the Texas Capitol from the Capitol Dome in Austin on Aug. 12, 2021.]()
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“The most hated people in Gunter”: How the government of this North Texas town broke apart
In December, all five members of the city council quit. A fight over a railroad development spiraled into political mudslinging, broken trust and conspiracy. Full Story
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![A railroad runs through the heart of Gunter, TX on January 11, 2024.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
Here’s how to vote in Texas’ March 5 primary elections
The deadline to register to vote was Feb. 5. The last day to apply to vote by mail was Feb. 23. Early voting ended March 1. Full Story
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![Voting stickers for 2024 primary election voter guide.]()