Hays County voted and results are in — unofficially.
As of 11:44 p.m. on Tuesday, all 93 precincts had reported in. Out of 170,350 registered voters in Hays County, 89,493 voters showed up to the polls for the Nov. 8 election — resulting in a voter turnout rate of 52.53%, according to the cumulative results report put out by Hays County. The results will not be considered “official” until they have been canvassed and certified.
Some of the most attention-grabbing, local races saw interesting results.
Hays County Judge
On the county level, the race for Hays County Judge almost saw the overthrow of incumbent Democrat Ruben Becerra by Republican challenger (and former Hays County Commissioner for Precinct 2) Mark Jones. Becerra managed a last-second win by a narrow margin, garnering a total of 44,214 votes (50.44%) to Jones’ 43,439 votes (49.56%).
Hays County Commissioner, Pct. 4
Meanwhile, Hays County Commissioner for Precinct 4 saw a surprisingly close race between incumbent Republican Walt Smith and challenger Independent Susan Cook. Smith won with 15,189 votes (54.14%) to Cook’s 12,865 votes (45.86%).
Dripping Springs ISD Bond
In a momentous decision, voters in Dripping Springs ISD voted down the district’s three-part bond package. Propositions A, B, and C each failed to pass by similar margins: 51.70% voted against Prop. A; 53.80% voted against Prop. B; and 53.55% voted against Prop. C. This effectively prevents the district from moving forward with its plans for a new elementary school, its plans for an expansion of Sycamore Springs Middle School and its plans for a second high school.
Judge, County Court-at-Law #3
Incumbent Republican Judge Dan O’Brien (40,637 votes, 64.84%) was overthrown by his Democratic challenger, Elaine S. Brown (46,117 votes, 53.16%).
The races for statewide representation were a bit more predictable: Republican Donna Campbell (22,734 votes, 57.05%) beat out Democrat Robert Walsh (17,114 votes, 42.95%) for State Senator in District 25, and Republican Carrie Isaac (12,734 votes, 57.88%) beat Democrat Justin Calhoun (9,267 votes, 42.12%) for State Representative in District 73.
On the federal level, Republican Chip Roy (28,641 votes, 54.09%) won the race for U.S. Representative in District 21 against Democrat Claudia Zapata (24,310 votes, 45.91%).
The full list of unofficial election results in Hays County can be found online at https://hayscountytx.com/download/departments/elections/2022/nov_8_2022_general/daily_counts/Cumulative-Results-unofficial.pdf?fbclid=IwAR39nn3HgLJLUjrMPhuNsU0tgjjnXIavJlYBwwMGIyU6kGVisCFxOO35ysw.
