Early voting in the March 3 primary begins Monday, Feb. 17 and concludes on Friday, Feb. 27. A full slate of contested races will be on the ballots in both Republican and Democratic primaries. The deadline to request a mail ballot is Feb. 20, according to votetexas.gov. One of the most closely watched statewide races for both parties are the primary races for U.S. Senator. Incumbent GOP Sen. John Cornyn faces two challengers: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt, R-Houston. On the Democratic side, U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas, faces state Rep. James Talarico, DRound Rock. There are many other contested races on the ballot as well. Voters can access election information, find out if they are registered to vote, and obtain other pertinent information at votetexas.gov.
More Than 30K Voucher Applications on First Day
More than 30,000 school voucher applications were submitted last week on the first day of the state’s new program to give families taxpayer-funded accounts for private school tuition and homeschooling expenses, the Houston Chronicle reported. The applications will be accepted until March 17 and are not first-come, first-served. The Legislature provided $1 billion in funding for the program’s first year, which is projected to support up to 100,000 accounts. If it receives more applications than can be funded, an income- and disability-based lottery will be held to determine which families receive vouchers. “When parents have more options, students have more opportunity — and that’s a win for Texas,” acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock said in a news release. Officially called Texas Education Freedom Accounts, the program is being administered by the state comptroller’s office and Odyssey, a New York-based tech contractor.
