Breckenridge Texan

Breckenridge and Stephens County are in the midst of two election cycles — the primaries and eventual election for county, state and national offices, and the elections for other local offices, including city, hospital and school boards — and the deadline to register to vote in the first election on the calendar is Monday, Feb. 3.

The Primary Election for Stephens County will be on March 3, followed by the Local General Election (city commissioners, hospital board and school board) on May 2, the Primary Runoff on May 26, and the General Election (county, state and national) on Nov. 3. Additionally, each of those elections will have Early Voting times.

Here are some important dates and information for local citizens to keep in mind:

Voter Registration

The deadline to register to vote in the Primary Election is Monday, Feb. 3.

To determine if you are already registered, visit the Texas Secretary of State’s “Am I Registered?” website. There’s a brief online form for you to fill out with some basic information about yourself (for example, name, date of birth, county you live in), and then the site will instantly tell you whether or not you are registered to vote. You can also find out if you are registered to vote by calling or visiting the County Voter Registrar; in Stephens County, that’s Tax Assessor/Collector Christie Latham, who can be contacted in the courthouse or by phone at 254-559-2732.

If you are not registered to vote, you can get an application from the Voter Registrar’s office. Once it’s filled out, you can either return it in person by Feb. 3 to the office or mail it in. If you mail in your application, it must be postmarked by Feb. 3.

You can also fill out an online application, available on the Secretary of State’s website. If you fill out the online application, you print it out and take it to the local Voter Registrar’s office or mail it in by Feb. 3.

Early Voting and Ballot by Mail

Early voting for the Primary Election will be from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Feb. 18-21 (Tuesday through Friday) and Feb. 24-28 (Monday through Friday) at the Stephens County Courthouse, 200 W. Walker St.

Registered voters who meet certain criteria may be eligible to vote early by mail. You may request a ballot by mail if you:

• will be away from your county on Election Day and during the hours that early voting is conducted;
• are sick or disabled;
• are 65 years of age or older on Election Day; or
• are confined in jail but otherwise eligible to vote.

The last day to request a Ballot by Mail is Feb. 21. To request a Ballot by Mail for Stephens County, call 254-559-2732 and request that an application to vote by mail be sent to you, or download the application here (PDF).

Voters wanting to vote by mail must re-apply every year in order to receive ballots for each election in that year. Also, they must indicate a party preference for the Primary Elections, i.e. either Republican or Democrat. There are instructions on the application.

2020 Primary Election

Texas’ Primary Election will be on “Super Tuesday,” March 3. At that time, voters will vote in either the Republican or Democratic primary election and vote for the candidate they want to see on the ballot in the Election in November.

Locally, the following candidates will be on either the Republican or Democratic ballots. Although most of the local offices do not have Democratic candidates running, the winner of the Republican Primary will not automatically be considered the winner of the November election because the deadline to file a declaration of write-in candidacy is July 18.

COUNTY COMMISSIONER PRECINCT 1

For the County Commissioner Precinct 1 position, the seven candidates who have filed to run in the Republican primary are: David Fambro, Chad Ezell, Malcolm Bufkin Sr., Rickey Edwards, Jimmie Cantrell, Will Harper and M. J. McIntire. No one filed to run in the Democratic primary.

In October, incumbent Republican Ed Russell announced he was going to retire and not run for re-election.

SHERIFF’S RACE

The race for Stephens County Sheriff heated up after current Sheriff Will Holt announced in December that he was withdrawing from the race and would not seek a second term.

Stephens County Chief Deputy Kevin Roach filed to run in the Republican Primary, and Kathy Marcom filed to run in the Democratic Primary. They will face off in the November election.

CANDIDATES RUNNING FOR OTHER COUNTY OFFICES

In the race for County Commissioner Precinct 3, incumbent Will Warren is running unopposed in the Republican Primary. Stephens County Tax Assessor-Collector Christie Latham and County Attorney Gary Trammel are also both running unopposed in the Republican Primary.

Robert (Wayne) McMullen has filed to run for Stephens County Constable and is running unopposed in the Republican Primary to replace current constable Adam Babilon, who retiring and not seeking reelection.

No Democratic candidates filed to run for any of those offices.

COUNTY PARTY CHAIRMEN

Burrell McKelvain has filed for Stephens County Republican Chairman to replace current Chairman Graham Reaugh, who is not seeking another term.

Stephens County Democratic Party Chairman Tommy Thompson is running for reelection.

DISTRICT JUDGE AND DISTRICT ATTORNEY

Incumbent Stephen Bristow is running unopposed for District Judge in the 90th Judicial District in the Republican Primary, and incumbent Dee Peavy is also running unopposed for District Attorney, 90th Judicial District. There are no Democratic candidates in either race.

NATIONAL AND STATE RACES

The primary ballots also will have candidates for many other offices on the state and national level. Those offices include U.S. president, U.S. Senate, congressional and legislative offices, the State Board of Education, the Railroad Commission and judicial seats.

General Election for Local Political Subdivisions

In addition to the Primary Election and General Election in November, the General Election for Local Political Subdivisions will be on May 2. That election will cover the Breckenridge City Commission, Stephens Memorial Hospital District Board of Directors and Breckenridge Independent School District Board of Trustees.

Those entities are still in the process of accepting applications for candidates to be placed on their ballots for the May election. The filing process will continue through 5 p.m. Friday, Feb. 14.

For more details on those elections, click here to read the Breckenridge Texan article.