Early voting starts Monday for municipal and school board elections in many local communities and for Denton Appraisal District Board elections throughout Denton County. The people that are elected in these elections determine about 90% of your property tax that you pay. On a day-to-day basis, they also have a larger impact on our daily lives than our representatives at the state or federal level.
Despite this, there is historically low voter turnout in these races and most races will have less than 10% voter turnout. Is the low turnout due to voter apathy or the fact that most voters don’t know which candidate to vote for so they choose to not vote?
I have religiously voted in every election for the past 40+ years. It was something that my father and grandfather instilled in me as I was growing up. Several times unfortunately, despite researching my choices, I probably voted for the wrong person because I didn’t understand what I should be looking for in a candidate. After serving on Flower Mound’s Town Council for the past six years and working with our counterparts on school boards, I have a much greater understanding of what voters should be looking for in a mayor, councilmember or school board trustee. I thought that I would share this information with you.
The first question that you should be asking yourself is does the candidate have the necessary time to devote to the position? Although time commitments can vary from position to position and organization to organization, the amount of required time to do the job properly is significantly more than you would think. On a typical week, I will spend 20-25 hours working on Town of Flower Mound activities. Many weeks, especially around budget time, will be even more demanding. There are emails that arrive 7 days a week to respond to, scheduled public town meetings, reading our 400–500-page agenda packets before meetings, meetings with residents, town staff, developers requesting input on proposed projects, attendance at Chamber of Commerce events, special town events like Independence Fest, our Christmas Parade or school events, etc. It all adds up. I have asked former and current school board trustees about the time that is required for their positions and been told that they have a similar workload.
Does the candidate have the necessary business and financial acumen background to serve in the capacity that they are running for? Our councilmembers are the town’s board of directors and our mayor in the chairman of the board. The same for the school board trustees and president of the school board. Public and private entity finance budgets, concepts and funding are not the same. Public budgets can be significantly more complex and confusing. Does the candidate have the capability to learn and adapt? You have invested in your community by moving here and for most people, spending a significant amount of money purchasing a residence here. Over time, you hope that those investments will pay off. Low municipal and school tax rates, a superior quality of life and good schools will make a community desirable and consequently home values will rise. Does the candidate have the skills to deliver these to you? Do they have current or past experience in doing so? If you were investing in a company, which candidate would you feel most comfortable with being on the board of directors?
What is their motivation for running for office? Do they have a servant’s heart and just want to serve the community? Or do they have higher political aspirations for themselves and plan to use the position as a steppingstone? If for a municipal council, what amount and pace of growth are they promoting? While growth in our area is inevitable, how does a council candidate propose to manage it? For a school board position, do they have children in the district and love kids in general?
What experience does the candidate have in serving the community? Have they served on boards and commissions for several years in support of the role they are seeking? Have they been elected and served on other boards, like an HOA, giving them experience in working with others on a board? Are they currently or have they in the past contributed to the community in other service organizations?
Each candidate will have a platform that they are promoting on either a Facebook page, a website or both. The Cross Timbers Gazette also offers a candidate guide. Look at what they are proposing. Do they have a platform that you support or is it against your values? Is it feasible? Or is it a bunch of political promises. The beauty of social media is that you can reach out and easily ask them any questions that you may still have. Lastly, most if not all the candidates or their supporters will be at the polls during early voting and Election Day. I suggest that you also talk to them at polling locations to get any last-minute questions answered before voting. And let’s get out and vote! You may vote at any Denton County polling location during early voting which runs from April 22 to April 30. You must vote at your designated location on Election Day, May 4. Polling locations can be found at VoteDenton.gov.
Jim Engel has served on the Flower Mound Town Council since 2018. Previously he served on the Flower Mound Board of Adjustments, Oil and Gas Appeals Board, was a member of the Flower Mound Citizen’s Police Safety Patrol and a past President of the Pecan Meadows HOA.
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