Published: September 20, 2009 12:43 am      

Voter registration deadline approaching

There is a lot at stake for Hunt County voters during the Nov. 3 special election.

Residents of Quinlan and Wolfe City will be deciding on whether to allow sales of beer and wine, residents of the Cash community will decide whether they want to become a city and there are 11 proposed amendments to the Texas Constitution; propositions dealing with changes in how properties are appraised and with how private property can be taken for public use through eminent domain.

In order for Hunt County voters to participate in any or all of the measures on the ballots, they need to register to vote within the next two weeks.

Texas Secretary of State Hope Andrade is reminding voters that Oct. 5 is the deadline for registering to vote for the Nov. 3 election.

“The deadline is approaching, but there is still time to register if you have not already done so,” Andrade said. “It only takes a few minutes to fill out a voter registration application – or to update information if you have moved – to be eligible to cast a ballot in November.”

Voters in Quinlan and Wolfe City are facing the same ballot issues voters in Greenville approved in an election in November of last year.

The first ballot issue will decide whether voters approve the sale of beer and wine at off-premise locations such as grocery stores. The second issue, if approved by voters, would allow residents to purchase alcoholic beverages by the drink at licenses establishments without having to become a member of a private club.

Residents of the Cash community, south of Greenville, could vote to become Hunt County’s newest city, as a ballot measure seeks voter approval of allowing Cash to become a Class C general rule municipality.

Voters will decide on 11 proposed amendments put forth by the 81st Legislature. Proposition 2 deals with changes in the taxation of homestead property, while Proposition 3, if approved, would require the legislature to provide for uniform standards for property appraisals. Proposition 11 would add restrictions in the use of eminent domain for seizing personal property for public use.

Texans can review ballot language, explanatory statements regarding each proposed amendment and a sample ballot for the Nov. 3 election through the Hunt County Voter Administration Office at 2217 Washington Street in downtown Greenville, on the office’s link at the www.huntcounty.net Web site or on the Secretary of State’s Web site at www.sos.state.tx.us.

Individuals who have yet to register can do so through the Hunt County Voter Administration Office or may obtain an application from the VOTEXAS Website: www.votexas.org. A person may also check their registration status on the Web site or by calling the Secretary of State’s voter hotline at 1-800-252-VOTE (8683).

Texas residents are eligible to vote if they are a United States citizen, at least 18 years old on Election Day, not a convicted felon (unless sentence, probation, and/or parole have been completed), and not declared mentally incapacitated by a court of law.