Allow me this brief moment to express my frustration over what I expect will occur in early November.
My neighbors and I are going to vote for Princeton City Council members, for Princeton Independent School District trustees and for a special municipal referendum calling for the formation of a home-rule charter committee.
The frustration, which I expect fully to experience, will be in the abysmal voter turnout.
Mayor Brianna Chacon, who is running for re-election to a full term, is urging us to vote. She laments the historically low turnout for these municipal elections. It well might fall into the single-digit percentage of eligible voters who actually cast ballots on Nov. 2. That stinks to high heaven, man!
How many times must I say the same thing? Which is that local elections bring the most tangible impact on us as voters. We don’t care! Or so the dismal turnouts would suggest. City Councils set our tax policy; they determine the level of police and fire protection we receive; they set policy for trash pickup; they spend money to repair our streets.
The home-rule charter committee decision has me particularly juiced up. Princeton’s population exploded between the 2010 and 2020 census; we now are home to more than 18,000 inhabitants. Texas law grants cities with populations of 5,000 or greater the right to seek home-rule charter governance; Princeton currently is governed as a “general law” city, adhering to laws written by the Legislature.
We gotta change that, folks!
I don’t want to see a miserable voter turnout make that decision. We need to have everyone casting ballots who is eligible to do so.
Are we clear? Good! See you at the polls!