Voters on West, Northwest sides head to polls today
Voters on the West and Northwest sides will head to the polls today for an uncommon February election to decide their new state representative.
The off-cycle special election will determine who represents District 125 in the Texas House of Representatives. The district spans from Zarzamora Street on the West Side to Loop 1604 on the Northwest Side. Between loops 410 and 1604, it loosely follows Bandera Road.
Former state Rep. Justin Rodriguez vacated the seat earlier this year when he accepted a post on the Bexar
County Commissioners Court.
Five people — four Democrats and one Republican — are running for the open seat. The Democrats are Steve Huerta, 50, a grassroots activist who has faced scrutiny about his eligibility to run; Ray Lopez, 69, who served on the City Council for eight years and has also chaired the Northside Independent School District and Metropolitan Planning Organization; Coda RayoGarza, 33, a senior coordinator for San Antonio ISD who was formerly a policy staffer to City Council members; and Art Reyna, 62, a Leon Valley attorney who held this House seat from 1996 to 2002. Fred Rangel, 63, who owns two local construction businesses, is the lone Republican in the race.
The polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Voters can verify whether they live in the district and check registration and polling place on the county’s website at bexar.org/elections. At the
polling site, the voter should have a photo ID such as a Texas driver’s license or U.S. passport, and election officials recommend that the voter bring his or her voter registration card to expedite the process. If a voter doesn’t have a photo ID and can’t reasonably obtain one, the citizen can still vote if he or she is registered to vote and has a current utility bill, government check or a certified birth certificate, among other identifying document options. Details are at bexar.org/elections.
Bexar elections officials reported that 3,354 people cast ballots during early voting, about 3.3 percent of all the people registered to vote in the district. That’s a turnout level roughly on par with recent special elections. In the city’s most recent special election, 4.22 percent of registered voters cast ballots. In the November midterm elections, that number was 49.96 percent.
Political observers say the size of the field makes it likely a runoff election will be necessary. That would be triggered if no candidate garners more than 50 percent of the vote. If necessary, a runoff likely would be held in March.