Your guide to the Kerr County ballot: Early voting starts Monday

Early voting for the Nov. 3 general election begins Monday, Oct. 19. The League of Women Voters of the Hill Country Texas has published its Kerr County Voter Guide, with candidates’ own answers on the district and local races.

The League is nonpartisan and prints candidates’ responses without editing them. Several candidates, including Republican congressional nominee Mark Teixeira and state Sen. Pete Flores, did not respond.

The full guide is available at lwvhillcountrytexas.org and in print at local libraries. Statewide races, including U.S. Senate, governor and lieutenant governor, are covered in a separate League guide for Texas. You can also look up your own ballot at VOTE411.org.

Key dates

• Oct. 19: Early voting begins
• Oct. 23: Last day to apply for a ballot by mail
• Oct. 30: Last day of early voting
• Nov. 3: Election Day, and the deadline to return mail ballots

Early voting locations

During early voting, you can vote at either location:

• Hill Country Youth Event Center, 3785 Highway 27 East, Kerrville
• West Kerr County Annex, 510 College St., Ingram

Early voting hours

• Oct. 19–23: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Saturday, Oct. 24: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
• Sunday, Oct. 25: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Oct. 26–30: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Election Day

On Election Day, polls are open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and you must vote at the polling place for the precinct on your orange voter registration card. Four precincts have new locations this year:

• Pct. 202: American Legion Hall, 300 FM 480, Center Point
• Pct. 405: Hunt Community Center, 107 Dutch Lane
• Pct. 410: Divide Volunteer Fire Department, 4180 Highway 41, Mountain Home
• Pct. 416: Western Hills Baptist Church, 2010 Goat Creek Road, Kerrville

Bring a photo ID. Cellphones, campaign material and loitering are not allowed at polling places. Curbside voting is available for voters who can’t enter the building.

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U.S. House, District 21

Kristin Hook (D) vs. Mark Teixeira (R)

Hook, a former middle school teacher with a doctorate in animal behavior, said the most pressing issues are the cost of living and corruption. She listed her priorities as “affordability, accountability, and opportunity.” She said she would support a moratorium on AI data centers, more federal money for rural water infrastructure, and a warrant requirement before police can track people using license-plate cameras.

Teixeira, the former baseball player who won the Republican nomination outright in March, did not respond.

Texas Senate, District 24

Pete Flores (R) vs. Joe Paz Herrera (D)

Herrera, a Natalia businessman with an MBA, named his priorities as public school funding, rural health care and protecting water and property rights. He called for pausing data center expansion until the state has stronger protections, and for giving counties more authority over large developments.

Flores, the incumbent, did not respond.

Texas House, District 53

Wes Virdell (R) vs. Kathryn Hartmann (D)

Virdell, the first-term incumbent, described himself as “a blue-collar legislator.” His priorities are eminent domain reform, ending government “mass surveillance,” and reducing the number of low-level crimes classified as felonies. He said he plans to file bills on 765-kV transmission lines and data centers. He also said rural counties need “some limited regulatory authority related to large industry.”

Hartmann, a former teacher and pediatric physical therapist, called for more public school funding, more money for students with disabilities, and taxing data centers. She also called for repealing House Bill 2127 of 2023, the law that limited local governments’ regulatory authority.

4th Court of Appeals, Chief Justice

Bert Richardson (R) vs. Antonia “Toni” Arteaga (D)

Both are veteran judges.

• Richardson: Currently on the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals and a former state district judge. He said judges should apply the law “according to its original meaning.”
• Arteaga: Has served more than 20 years as a Bexar County judge. She said judges “must apply the law as written” and make sure every litigant is heard.

Kerr County Commissioner, Pct. 2

Rich Paces (R) vs. Jeremy Walther (I)

This is the county’s only contested county-level race.

Paces, the incumbent, cited his four years on the court and 36 years in the oil and gas industry, including executive management.

• Issues: He listed flood recovery, a countywide flood warning system, controlling spending and property taxes, groundwater, “election integrity,” and opposition to battery energy storage systems.
• Budget: He noted that this year’s budget projects a $12.7 million deficit, but said the county usually spends less than it budgets.

Walther is a Texas A&M-trained ecologist and founder of Pint & Plow Brewing Co. He also founded the Kerrville Urban Trail System.

• Issues: He named growth, water security, emergency preparedness, and moving roads and bridges to a maintenance schedule instead of fixing them as they fail.
• Budget: He said the county’s reliance on reserves to balance its budget is “a dangerous pattern.” He called for more grant-writing, cost-sharing agreements and private partnerships.

Paces and the county Republican Party have threatened to sue to block Walther from taking office if he wins. Walther says he will fight it. [LINK to Story 1]

Center Point ISD trustees (three at-large seats)

There are six candidates. Five responded.

• Harry Joe Holt Jr.: Lifelong Center Point resident and business owner
• Mary L. Lambert: Retired teacher with 35 years of experience
• Robbin Smith: Retired from the district’s business office
• Ren Trapino: Art teacher with 40 years in classrooms
• Josh Whitworth: Second-generation graduate and youth coach
• Jesse Segura: Did not respond

Declining enrollment came up repeatedly. Trapino said 30 students left the district last year and 40 more this year, and Whitworth said the losses are hurting funding. Smith pointed to hiring and keeping teachers, and to classroom discipline.

Comfort ISD, Trustee District 2

Alison E. Judkins vs. Dawn Kay Lantz

• Judkins: The incumbent trustee. She cited the district’s deficit budget, unfunded state mandates and the recently passed bond.
• Lantz: A Comfort graduate and retired Kerr County elected official. She called for equal funding for all activities and competitive teacher pay.

Harper ISD trustees (four at-large seats)

There are five candidates for four seats.

• Paul Anderson: Incumbent and CPA. He cited rising costs, aging facilities and vouchers.
• Bill Bacon: Retired superintendent with 29 years in public schools. He stressed hiring top teachers.
• Mary Krebs: Retired after 40 years in law enforcement. She focused on campus safety.
• John Fogle and Timothy Holmes: Did not respond.

Unopposed races

These candidates won their Republican primaries in March and face no opposition:

• District Judge, 198th District: M. Patrick Maguire
• County Judge: Tom Jones
• County Court at Law Judge: Robert Hunter Moose
• District Clerk: Eunavae Baublit Tonroy
• County Clerk: Carl Berthold
• County Treasurer: Tracy Soldan
• County Surveyor: Lee C. Voelkel
• County Commissioner, Pct. 1 (unexpired term): Clay Lambert
• County Commissioner, Pct. 4: Guy “Bubba” Walters
• Justice of the Peace, Pct. 1: Mitzi M. French
• Justice of the Peace, Pct. 2: J.R. Hoyne
• Justice of the Peace, Pct. 3: Taylor Robertson
• Justice of the Peace, Pct. 4: Don Harris (resigned; Sylvia Foraker will be appointed to fill the seat).

Disclosure: Walther owns Pint & Plow Brewing Co., which hosted The Lead Live for five years before the show moved to the Peterson Health Digital Studio in September. Walther’s campaign recently bought $700 in advertising in The Lead’s newsletters.