Early voting ends on March 2 in political party primaries

Through Feb. 26, 8,345 Bell County voters have cast ballots in the Republican Party Primary and 1,843 have cast ballots in the Democratic Party Primary. This is just over five percent of the total registered voters in the county.

Despite several contested local races in the Republican party primary and contested Democrat races at the state and national level, Bell County voters have pretty much shrugged their shoulders thus far in early voting.

It looks as if the primary voting will surpass the 16,710 Bell County voters who cast ballots in the March 2014 primaries.

In 2014, just over 10 percent of the 161,716 registered voters in Bell County voted in the March primaries as 16,710 total ballots were cast in the county. This was despite heavily contested races at the state level in both parties. Both of the primaries in 2014 ended up in May run-offs. In the run-off elections, fewer than five percent of the registered voters in Bell County cast ballots: 6,058 Republicans cast ballots in run-offs in which incumbent David Dewhurst was unseated by Dan Patrick and Ken Paxton earned the Republican nod. Both were elected in the November general election. Just over 25 percent of Bell County registered voters cast ballots in the November 2014 general election.

The last day of in-person early voting in the political primaries is March 2 with the polls open 7 a.m.-7 p.m. March 1-2.

Early Voting will be conducted in person each weekday at:

• Belton – Bell County Courthouse Annex, 550 East 2nd Ave

•  Killeen – Bell County Annex, 301 Priest Drive

• Killeen -Killeen Community Center, 2201 E. Veterans Memorial Blvd

• Temple – Bell County Annex, 205 East Central Ave

• Salado – Salado Civic Center, 601 North Main

• Harker Heights – Parks & Recreation Center, 307 Millers Crossing

On election day March 6, the polls will be open 7 a.m.- 7 p.m.

Precinct 203 voters (Salado) will cast their ballots at Salado Church of Christ Activities Center, 225 North Church Street, Salado.

The last day to receive a ballot by mail is March 6.

On the Bell County Republican party March 2018 Ballot will be these contested races:

U.S. SENATOR: Bruce Jacobson, Jr., Geraldine Sam, Mary Miller, Ted Cruz, Stefano de Stefano

U.S. REPRESENTATIVE., DIST. 31: John Carter, Mike Sweeney

GOVERNOR: SECEDE Kilgore, Barbara Krueger, Greg Abbott

LT. GOVERNOR: Scott Milder, Dan Patrick

COMMISSIONER OF THE GENERAL LAND OFFICE: Davey Edwards, Rick Range, Jerry Patterson, George P. Bush

COMMISSIONER OF AGRICULTURE: Trey Blocker, Jim Hogan, Sid Miller

RAILROAD COMMISSIONER: Weston Martinez, Christi Craddick

PRESIDING JUDGE, COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS: David Bridges, Sharon Keller

JUDGE, COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS, PLACE 8: Jay Brandon, Dib Waldrop, Michelle Slaughter

STATE REPRESENTATIVE, DISTRICT 54: Scott Cosper, Larry S. Smith, Brad Buckley

STATE REPRESENTATIVE, DISTRICT 55: Brandon Hall, Hugh D. Shine, CJ Grisham

JUSTICE, 3RD COURT OF APPEALS DISTRICT, PLACE 6: Kristofer Monson, Michael “Mike” Toth, Donna Davidson, Jennifer S. Freel

DISTRICT JUDGE, 264TH JUDICAL DISTRICT: Randy Dale, Paul LePak, Steve Duskie, Jeff Parker

COUNTY TREASURER: Gaylon Evans, Jeannette Compean

COUNTY COMMISSIONER PRECINCT 2: Bobby Whitson, Tim Brown, Brit Owen

JUSTICE OF THE PEACE, PRECINCT NO. 2: Richard Sapp, Cliff Coleman

JUSTICE OF THE PEACE, PRECINCT NO. 1: Theodore R. (Ted) Duffield, Louis “Lou” Griffin Jr.

COUNTY CHAIRMAN, REPUBLICAN PARTY: Nancy Boston, Zenia Warren

Proposition 1: Texas should replace the property tax system with an appropriate consumption tax equivalent.

Proposition 2: No government entity should ever construct or fund construction of toll roads without voter approval.

Proposition 3: Republicans in the Texas House should select their Speaker nominee by secret ballot in a binding caucus without Democrat influence.

Proposition 4: Texas should require employers to screen new hires through the free E-Verify system to protect jobs for legal workers.

Proposition 5: Texas families should be empowered to choose from public, private, charter, or homeschool options for their children’s education, using tax credits or exemptions without government constraints or intrusion.

Proposition 6: Texas should protect the privacy and safety of women and children in spaces such as bathrooms, locker rooms, and showers in all Texas schools and government buildings.

Proposition 7: I believe abortion should be abolished in Texas.

Proposition 8: Vote fraud should be a felony in Texas to help ensure fair elections.

Proposition 9: Texas demands that Congress completely repeal Obamacare.

Proposition 10: To slow the growth of property taxes, yearly revenue increses should be capped at 4%, with increases in excess of 4% requiring voter approval.

Proposition 11: Tax dollars should not be used to fund the building of stadiums for professional or semi-professional sports teams.

Contested Races in the Democratic Party Primary are these:

U.S. SENATOR: Beto O’Rourke, Sema Hernandez, Edward Kimbrough

U.S. REPRESENTATIVE, DISTRICT 25: Kathi Thomas, Julie Oliver, West Hansen, Chris Perr, Chetan Panda

U.S. REPRESENTATIVE, DISTRICT 31: Mary Jennings “MJ” Hegar,  Kent Lester, Christine Eady Mann, Mike Clark

GOVERNOR: Andrew White, Adrian Ocegueda, James Jolly Clark, Grady Yarbrough, Joe Mumbach Tom Wakely, Lupe Valdez, Cedric Davis, Sr., Demetria Smith, Jeffrey Payne

LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR: Mike Collier, Michael Cooper

COMPTROLLER OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTS: Joi Chevalier, Tim Mahoney

COMMISSIONER OF THE GENERAL LAND OFFICE: Tex Morgan, Miguel Suazo

RAILROAD COMMISSIONER: Roman McAllen,  Chris Spellmon

COUNTY COMMISSIONER PRECINCT 4: Louie Minor, John Driver

Proposition 1: Should everyone in Texas have the right to quality public education from pre-k to 12th grade, and affordable college and career training without the burden of crushing student loan debt?

Proposition 2: Should everyone in Texas have the right to refinance student loan debt with the Federal Reserve at a 0% interest rate, as relief for the crushing burden of debt and an investment in the next generation of Americans?

Proposition 3: Should everyone in Texas have a right to healthcare, guaranteed by a universal, quality Medicare-for-all system?

Proposition 4: Should everyone in Texas have the right to economic security, where all workers have earned paid family and sick leave and a living wage that respects their hard work?

Proposition 5: Should the Democratic Party promote a national jobs program, with high wage and labor standards, to replace crumbling infrastructure and rebuild hurricane damaged areas, paid for with local, state, and federal bonds financed through the Federal Reserve at low interest with long term maturities?

Proposition 6: Should everyone in Texas have the right to clean air, safe water, and a healthy environment?

Proposition 7: Should everyone in Texas have the right to a life of dignity and respect, free from discrimination and harassment anywhere, including businesses and public facilities, no matter how they identify, the color of their skin, who they love, socioeconomic status, or from where they come?

Proposition 8: Should everyone in Texas have the right to affordable and accessable housing and modern utilities including high speed internet, free from any form of discrimination?

Proposition 9: Should every eligible Texan have the right to vote, made easier by automatic voter registration, the option to vote by mail, a state election holiday, and no corporate campaign influence, foreign interference, or illegal gerrymandering?

Proposition 10: Should everyone in Texas have the right to a fair criminal justice system that treats people equally and puts an end to the mass incarceration of young people of color for minor offenses?

Proposition 11: Should there be a just and fair comprehensive immigration reform solution that includes an earned path to citizenship for law-abiding immigrants and their children, keeps families together, protects DREAMers, and provides workforce solutions for businesses?

Proposition 12: Should everyone in Texas have the right to a fair tax system, where all interests (business, corporations, and individuals) pay their share, so that state government meets its obligations?