School, city election filing period begins

The election filing period has begun for those wishing to serve on city councils and school boards in Gonzales County and to run in the Saturday, May 4, election.

State law allows for a 30-day window of opportunity for interested parties to submit an application to run for council or school board. This year, that period of time began Wednesday, Jan. 17, and will continue to 5 p.m. Friday, Feb. 16.

In order to run for office, according to Texas Election Code Section 141.01, an individual must be a citizen of the United States; 18 years of age or older on the first day of the term to be filled at election; have not been determined mentally incompetent by a final judgment of a court; have not been finally convicted of a felony from which the person has not been pardoned or otherwise released from the disabilities; have resided continuously in the state for 12 months and in the territory as applicable for six months immediately preceding the deadline for filing an application for a place on the ballot. Candidates also must satisfy any other eligibility requirements prescribed by law for a particular office.

The following are the positions up for grabs on the ballot with incumbents listed in parentheses:

Gonzales city

Seats available on the Gonzales City Council include District 1 (Joseph “Poochy” Kridler) and District 2 (Sherri Tumlinson Koepp). Candidates must file for office at Gonzales City Hall, 820 St. Joseph St., Gonzales.

Nixon city

Seats available on the Nixon City Council include the mayor (Dorothy Riojas) and two at-large seats (Maggie Gaytan and Ellie Dominguez). Candidates must file for office at Nixon City Hall, 302 E. Central Ave., Nixon.

Smiley city

Seats available on the Smiley City Council include mayor (Lisa Benavidez) and two at-large seats (Ellis Villasana and Melva Robinson Childres). Candidates must file for office at Smiley City Hall, 207 Steele St., Smiley.

Waelder city

Seats available on the Waelder City Council include mayor (Roy Tovar) and two at-large seats (Peggy Blackmon and a seat held vacant since the death of Sam Ramirez). Candidates must file for office at Waelder City Hall, 300 Hwy 90 West, Waelder.

Gonzales ISD

Seats available include District 4 (Josie Smith-Wright) and District 7 (Sandra Gorden). Candidates must file for office at Gonzales ISD Administration, 1615 St Louis St., Gonzales.

Nixon-Smiley CISD

Seats available include Place 2 (Bud Box) and Place 3 (Richard Lott). Candidates must file for office at Nixon-Smiley CISD Administration, 800 N. Rancho Road, Nixon.

Waelder ISD

Seats available are three at-large seats (JoAnn Ibarra, Adolph Gonzales and Jamie Castro). Candidates must file for office at Waelder ISD Administration, 201 US Hwy 90 W, Waelder.

The last day to register to vote in the May 6 election is Thursday, April 4. Early voting begins Monday, April 22 and continues through Tuesday, April 30.