Election: Council trio re-elected, Tiffany Kanatani Haynes wins school board, amendments pass

Bandera County voters took to the polls Tuesday, re-electing Rebeca Gibson, Christine Morse and Jerry Russe to Bandera City Council and choosing Tiffany Kanatani Hayes to Bandera Independent School District Place 3.

Full local election results for Bandera County are as follows:

Bandera City Council:
*Winner

Robbin D. Lynch: 18 total votes; 8.96%
*Rebeca Gibson: 55 total votes; 27.36%
*Christine Morse: 47 total votes; 23.38%
Robby Pierce: 39 total votes; 19.40%
*Jerry Russe: 42 total votes; 20.90%

Bandera ISD School Board Trustee, Place 3

*Tiffany Kanatani Hayes: 765 total votes; 60.05%
Jerry Shrum: 509 total votes; 39.95%

Overall, 2,064 of the 17,941 registered voters in Bandera County voted in the election. That’s 11.5 percent of the registered voters in the county, down significantly from 2020’s 74.27 percent voter turnout.

Elsewhere on the ballot, the eight proposed amendments to the state Constitution passed on a state level, with the majority of Bandera County voters leaning favorably for all except Proposition Two, which authorizes counties to issue bonds or notes to raise funds for transportation and infrastructure in underdeveloped areas.

Two amendments passed were initially introduced in response to restrictions put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, one banning the government from prohibiting religious services and another allowing residents who live in nursing homes, assisted living centers and state-supported living centers the right to establish a designated caregiver that cannot be denied visitation.

The eight proposed amendments to the state Constitution were passed as bills during this year’s legislative sessions and require voter approval.

With 100 percent of Bandera County precincts reporting and 100 percent of state counties and polling locations reporting, statewide and Bandera County results for the proposed state Constitution amendments are as follows

Proposition 1
Allowing charitable raffles at rodeo events by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association or the Women's Professional Rodeo Association. Under Texas law, unauthorized raffles could be considered illegal gambling.

Bandera County: 1,755 (85.53%) For; 299 (14.47%) Against
Statewide: 1,242,625 (83.82%) For; 239,783 (16.18%) Against

Proposition 2
Authorizing counties to issue bonds or notes to raise funds for transportation and infrastructure in underdeveloped areas. Under Texas law, cities and towns already have the authority to fund projects this way.

Bandera County: 969 (47.22 %) For; 1,083 (52.78%) Against
Statewide: 931,453 (63.09%) For; 544,834 (36.91%) Against

Proposition 3
Prohibiting the state or political subdivision of the state from prohibiting or limiting religious services. This was written in part as a response to closures during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bandera County: 1,624 (79.1%) For; 429 (20.9%) Against
Statewide: 925,447 (62.42%) For; 557,093 (37.58) Against

Proposition 4
Requiring candidates for Texas Supreme Court, the Court of Criminal Appeals or a Texas court of appeals to have 10 years of experience practicing law in Texas to be eligible; current law requires 10 years of experience but allows for out-of-state experience. Proposition 4 also requires candidates for district judge to have eight years of experience practicing laws in Texas; current law requires four years of experience.

Bandera County: 1,242 (61.58%) For; 775 (38.42%) Against
Statewide: 845,030 (58.78%) For; 592,585 (41.22%) Against

Proposition 5
Allowing the State Commission on Judicial Conduct to have oversight of candidates running for judicial office by accepting complaints or reports, conducting investigations and reprimanding them. Currently, the commission has oversight over current judicial officials.

Bandera County: 1,260 (62.44%) For; 778 (37.56%) Against
Statewide: 852,336(59.23%) For; 586,686 (40.77%) Against

Proposition 6
Establishing a right for residents of nursing homes and assisted living facilities to designated one essential caregiver who cannot be denied in-person visitation rights. The amendment was introduced in response to restrictions put in place in March 2020 as a response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Bandera County: 1,839 (90.01%) For; 204 (9.99%) Against
Statewide: 1,293,922 (87.87%) For; 178,665 (12.13%) Against

Proposition 7
Limiting school district property taxes incurred by the surviving spouse of a deceased person with disabilities older than 65. Under current law, the surviving spouse must be at least 55 at the partner’s time of death and still live in the home.

Bandera County: 1,822 (89.01%) For; 225 (10.99%) Against
Statewide: 1,285,384 (87.12%) For; 190,109 (12.88%) Against

Proposition 8
Expanding eligibility for residential homestead property tax exemptions to spouses of military members killed or fatally injured in the line of duty. Currently, spouses of military members killed in action are exempt.

Bandera County: 1,834 (89.73%) For; 210 (10.27%) Against
Statewide: 1,291,920 (87.76%) For; 180,179 (12.24%) Against

Detailed results for the Constitutional amendments, including numbers by county, can be viewed at results.texas-election.com/races.