NEW FACES ON AREA CITY COUNCILS, SCHOOL BOARDS AFTER ELECTION
City councils and school boards around the area saw a shakeup after Saturday’s election, while voters also participated in several city, county and school district propositions.
The Bellville City Council will have a new member, as Betty Hollon defeated Position 1 incumbent Wayne Browning and fellow challenger Dallas Bozich with 216 votes to Browning’s 181 and Bozich’s 4. Position 3 Alderwoman Ashley Slater narrowly defeated challenger Bob Hancock 201-194. On the Bellville School Board, Jessica Gordon defeated Mimi Rettig for the Position 6 seat of Vince Ruffino, who resigned in January, by a margin of 947-487. Heather Novicke tallied 870 votes and won the Position 7 seat of Andrew Murrell, who received 601.
The Sealy School Board saw Position 5 incumbent Ryan Reichardt win re-election with 464 votes, compared to 268 for challenger Ralph Bond.
The City of Sealy had five city charter amendment propositions, and all five passed. Proposition 1, which would remove partial terms from being calculated toward term limits, passed 175-77. Proposition 2, making charter language pertaining to forfeiture of office consistent with state law, was approved 243-13. Voters gave approval for the third proposition, allowing the city council to fill vacancies by appointment if the unexpired term is a year or less, 164-92. The fourth proposition, amending the charter to make language on the canvassing of elections and declaration of results consistent with the state, passed 239-15. Proposition 5, allowing the city council to extend the charter review commission’s term of office beyond six months, tallied 156 “yes” votes and 96 “no” votes.
All three La Grange City Council incumbents won re-election, with one race coming by the slimmest of margins. Chris Jernigan, who holds the Ward 4 seat by appointment, won the race for a one-year term against Arthur Bosque by a single vote, 51-50. Meanwhile, Ward 1 incumbent Kathy Weishuhn defeated Sandy Hooper 118-20, and Ward 2 incumbent Violet “Patsy” Zbranek received 65 votes over Kenneth Taylor’s 44. In La Grange ISD, two three-way races were decided for positions vacated by outgoing board members. Anthony Wessels collected 613 votes and will fill the Place 1 seat of Dr. Don Mayer, winning over Blake Harbers, who received 344 votes, and Jan Hill, who had 191. The Place 2 position of Greg Trlicek will go to Travis Ulrich, who received 710 votes to Brandon Shielack’s 235 and Jim Howse’s 212.
In Round Top’s contested alderperson election, newcomers Jeannette Burger and Owen Massey will fill two seats on the town council after receiving 48 and 46 votes, respectively. Incumbent Lynn Conine tallied 28 votes. Voters in Carmine approved a proposition 23-0 reauthorizing the city’s 0.25 percent sales and use tax to continue providing revenue to repair and maintain streets.
The Caldwell School Board filled the three trustee positions of Clover Cochran, Tripp Warrant and Rebecca Gardner, all with new faces. New members on the board will be Vicki Ochs, who collected 661 votes, Matthew Hicks, who received 617, and Krista Zwernemann, who had 562. The other three candidates were Greg Cook, who tallied 454 votes, Gardner, who had 165, and Blake Nelson, who had 136.
Somerville’s three city council incumbents won re-election against two challengers. Amanda Flencher received 121 votes, while Deonna Strickland Moses had 109 and Bobby Jeff Schoppe had 105. Sherry Jean Miller garnered 16 votes, while Freddy Elliott received 14. The Somerville School Board race also ended with the incumbents winning another term, as Linda Pinkerton and Jason Urbanosky received 208 votes and 201 votes, compared to 79 for Sylvia Hutson Edmonson and 52 for Sammy Hudgen.
Three seats on the Snook City Council will be filled by new members. Matthew Collins was the highest vote-getter with 81 votes, followed by Frank Fields with 51 and Faustina Vega with 45. Incumbent Jared Snow received 39 votes, and Linda Adair had 27. For the Snook School Board, one of two incumbents won re-election, with newcomer Tiffany Sodolak receiving the highest amount of votes at 217. Incumbent Bradley Prihoda fills the other seat with 203 votes, while the second incumbent, Neshae Thomas, had 78 votes.
Burleson County voters rejected the creation of a County Assistance District (CAD), but it was a close call. The CAD, which would have assessed an additional 1.5 percent sales tax on products sold in the county’s unincorporated areas, failed with 866 votes against, 824 in favor.
The City of Giddings filled the seat of mayor and two council positions. Joel Lopez defeated Ramzi Awad 356-204 for the position of John Dowell, who did not seek another term as mayor. On the council, incumbent Linda Pruitt won re-election with 318 votes, and Mark Muniz will join her on the council after receiving 293 votes. Other challengers were Jason Haas, who amassed 229 votes, and Randie Maass, who finished with 153. The Giddings School Board race ended with all three incumbents winning another term, with Spencer Schneider receiving 453 votes, Mark Johnson getting 441, and Adam Awad tallying 415. Other candidates’ vote totals included 403 for Adrian Lara, 401 for Torie Morrow and 200 for Mikel Luna.
On the Navasota City Council, incumbents Bernie Gessner and Pattie Pederson will remain on the council. Gessner defeated Doris Sauls 196-89, and Pederson beat Eustacio Ostigin 198-75. Iola ISD’s $24 million bond measure, which called for the renovation of the elementary administration building, addition of classrooms, a new multipurpose gym, and other campus improvements, failed with a total of 294 votes in opposition and 275 in support. For the Iola School Board, challenger Sierra Betancourt defeated incumbent Dedra Nevill 296-233.
The City of Hempstead will have a new mayor, after Position 1 Councilmember Erica Gillum received 526 votes to Dave Shelburne’s 491. Gillum’s council seat was won by Mildred Jefferson, who defeated Jacob Rahdarian 583-403. Position 2 incumbent Cindy Hill-Pearce won re-election after receiving 543 votes compared to Walter Pendleton’s 471. The Hempstead School Board saw the Position 2 seat formerly held by Kay Kloecker go to James Glover, who attained 636 votes, while Candice Adams received 532 votes and Daveta Vana had 39. Position 3 incumbent Albert Garfield was re-elected after defeating Elaine Webb 854-323.