Texas
It’s election day, and progressive-backed propositions are on ballots in 2 Texas cities
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Voters throughout Texas are heading to the polls Saturday for municipal elections which can be being headlined by a number of formidable, progressive-backed poll propositions.
Mayors in a few of the state’s largest cities are additionally on the poll, however few face severe competitors. Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson doesn’t face any opponents in any respect.
That has targeted most political consideration on poll propositions in San Antonio, Austin and El Paso that contact on a number of progressive priorities. In San Antonio, the state’s second-largest metropolis, progressives are pushing a “justice constitution” that guarantees to decriminalize abortion and low-level marijuana offenses and require tickets somewhat than arrests for some nonviolent offenses.
In El Paso, progressives are backing Proposition Ok, or the “local weather constitution,” which might set aggressive renewable power targets and overhaul metropolis coverage to make decreasing carbon emissions a precedence. It has drawn the help of Beto O’Rourke, the previous statewide Democratic candidate and member of the U.S. Home from El Paso.
The poll propositions have drawn fierce opposition from public security and enterprise teams, which have issued dire warnings about their impression.
The poll propositions are a part of a pattern that has Texas progressives turning to native elections to implement an agenda that has been blocked by the Legislature. Republican lawmakers have taken discover and are prioritizing proposals this legislative session to slim the cities’ residence rule authority.
Polls are open Saturday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Progressive poll propositions
San Antonio is residence to the largest progressive struggle in Texas. Proposition A wouldn’t solely overhaul policing via its provisions on abortion, marijuana and nonviolent offenses, however it could additionally outlaw no-knock warrants and officer chokeholds.
Town has mentioned just one provision — making a “justice director” at Metropolis Corridor — is per state legislation, with the remaining provisions unenforceable.
Supporters are relishing the chance to ship a symbolic message in regards to the metropolis’s values and probably battle the state in courtroom if the proposition passes. They’re additionally branding it as the primary time Texas voters get an opportunity to vote straight on the problem of abortion for the reason that U.S. Supreme Courtroom overturned Roe v. Wade final 12 months, triggering a digital abortion ban in Texas.
Nevertheless, a lot of the campaigning has targeted on a proposal to develop the town’s cite-and-release coverage. At the moment, San Antonio police have the discretion to both make an arrest or situation a quotation for a variety of Class A and B misdemeanor offenses, resembling theft from a enterprise of lower than $750. Proposition A would require citations for these offenses and develop the listing of offenses eligible for citations.
Supporters say Proposition A is required to scale back jailing and release assets to deal with extra severe crime. However opponents argue it is going to incentivize crime and harm the economic system. Its opponents embody Mayor Ron Nirenberg, who has in any other case been a Democratic ally on a few of the points within the proposition.
In El Paso, Proposition Ok goals to achieve past the town’s operations and try and set clear power targets for your entire native economic system: 80% clear power by 2030 and 100% by 2045. It might name on the town of El Paso to create a brand new local weather division, produce local weather impression statements for main metropolis choices and rethink native coverage in any respect ranges to chop greenhouse gasoline emissions. It might additionally require the town to discover shopping for El Paso Electrical, which is privately owned.
It’s the second local weather proposal dropped at El Paso voters in lower than a 12 months: In November, voters authorised a proposition to create a metropolis local weather motion plan.
The proposition has provoked a bitter struggle between financial growth teams and native local weather activists, together with these concerned with the nationwide Dawn Motion. Even in his latest endorsement of the proposition, O’Rourke mentioned it was not “very best,” calling a few of the language “complicated and imprecise.”
And in Austin, voters will determine on dueling propositions associated to policing. Proposition A was positioned on the poll by legal justice reformers and seeks to extend oversight of the Austin Police Division. Proposition B is equally worded however backed by legislation enforcement teams and geared towards sustaining the established order.
Mayors in search of reelection
Along with Dallas’ Johnson, different mayors up for reelection Saturday embody Fort Value’s Mattie Parker and San Antonio’s Nirenberg. Whereas Parker and Nirenberg have a number of opponents, none have posed a severe risk.
The races are nonpartisan, however every mayor has partisan historical past. Johnson is a former Democratic state consultant, whereas Parker has recognized as a Republican however has expressed dismay with the present state of the occasion.
There may be additionally a mayoral race in Arlington, the Dallas suburb that counts as Texas’ seventh-most-populous metropolis. Mayor Jim Ross is in search of reelection in opposition to a realtor, Amy Cearnal, who has acquired massive cash within the homestretch and has attacked Ross for donating to Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential marketing campaign.
Nonetheless, Ross is the favourite to win, very similar to the opposite incumbent mayors.
A extra pitched battle is taking part in out farther down the poll in Fort Value, the place Republican forces try to win again a majority on the Metropolis Council. Democrats gained a one-seat majority on the council in 2021, and conservatives try to take over a newly expanded 11-seat council.
Erin Douglas contributed reporting.
Disclosure: El Paso Electrical has been a monetary supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan information group that’s funded partly by donations from members, foundations and company sponsors. Monetary supporters play no position within the Tribune’s journalism. Discover a full listing of them right here.
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Texas
Former Colorado defensive end Dayon Hayes transfers to Texas A&M
Former Colorado Buffaloes defensive end Dayon Hayes is set to continue his collegiate career at Texas A&M after transferring following a season-ending injury. Hayes, a 6-foot-3, 265-pound defender, began his journey at Pitt, where he played from 2020 to 2023, accumulating 13 sacks and 80 tackles over four seasons.
At Pitt, Hayes showcased his potential in his sophomore and junior years, logging around 500 combined snaps and producing 30 pressures. His breakout came in 2023 when he amassed 44 pressures and a 13% pass rush win rate, ranking 12th in the ACC. Hayes also demonstrated solid run defense, posting an average tackle depth of 1.6 yards and recording 10.5 stops for loss. His ability to set the edge and prevent runners from escaping outside made him a critical piece of Pitt’s defense.
Following his success at Pitt, Hayes transferred to Colorado as a highly sought-after addition to Deion Sanders’ revamped Buffaloes roster. He made an immediate impact, registering two sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss in Colorado’s first three games. However, his promising start was cut short by a knee injury in the fourth game, sidelining him for the rest of the season.
Deion Sanders says he won’t attend the 2025 NFL Draft in Green Bay
Despite the setback, Hayes’ strong early performance likely earned him a medical redshirt, granting him another year of eligibility. With his final collegiate season on the horizon, Hayes opted to join Texas A&M, bringing his pass-rushing skills to the SEC. The Aggies, coming off an eight-win season, are set to face USC in the Las Vegas Bowl. Hayes’ ability to pressure quarterbacks and defend the run should bolster Texas A&M’s defensive front, adding experience and depth to their edge rotation for the 2024 season.
Texas
D-FW can claim Texas’ best high school football team in an otherwise down year for Dallas
ARLINGTON — North Crowley showed out on Saturday in its dazzling 50-21 victory over Austin Westlake in the 6A Division I state title game, winning the program’s second state championship and putting Fort Worth high school football on the map in front of 36,120 fans at AT&T Stadium.
Until North Crowley took the field at 7:30 p.m., there was a possibility the Dallas-Fort Worth area might boast only one state champion in 2024. Celina routed Kilgore 55-21 in the 4A Division I state championship to capture the program’s ninth state title and its first under coach Bill Elliott.
But North Texas teams came up short in the next three title games, the region’s worst showing at state since 2021, when South Oak Cliff became the first Dallas ISD school to win a recognized state championship since 1958, but Denton Guyer and Duncanville fell in the 6A state championship games.
Two-time state champion South Oak Cliff missed a last-second field goal, falling 38-35 to third-year program Richmond Randle in the 5A Division II state title game Friday night. It was SOC’s second straight loss in the state championship game.
“The future is still bright,” South Oak Cliff coach Jason Todd said. “We just gotta find out what’s going to get us over this hump.”
Smithson Valley, from the San Antonio area, topped Highland Park 32-20 as the six-time state champion faded in the second half of the 5A Division I state title game Saturday afternoon.
In the second game of the day, eight-time state champion Southlake Carroll extended its title drought to 13 years with a 24-17 loss to Austin Vandegrift in the 6A Division II game.
“It’ll happen one day. I’m excited about what the future holds,” said Carroll coach Riley Dodge, who fell to 0-2 in state title games as a coach.
The Dallas area claimed three football state champions in 2023 with Anna winning the 4A Division I state title and Duncanville and DeSoto sweeping the 6A Division I and II state championships, respectively. The southern Dallas County schools also swept the 6A state championships in 2022, when South Oak Cliff won its second straight 5A Division II state title.
But this year, the rest of Texas didn’t let the Dallas area, a high school football mecca, run the table. Teams from each of the state’s major metros — Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio —- won a title in each division of the UIL’s two highest classifications.
Even before this week’s state championship games, 2024 seemed to mark a changing of the guard. Neither Duncanville, DeSoto nor Houston-area power Galena Park North Shore made it to AT&T Stadium this year. Nor did 12-time UIL state champion Aledo, the juggernaut west of Fort Worth that had won the last two 5A Division I state championships.
But North Crowley did, after knocking off both DeSoto and Duncanville this season. North Texas might not have dominated the competition as it has in recent years, but for a third straight season, the king of 6A reigns in Dallas-Fort Worth.
“When you get to this point, there’s only one team that’s standing that’s hoisting the trophy. And fortunately for us, this year it’s us and we just happen to be from 817,” North Crowley coach Ray Gates said. “We’re elated to be able to bring that type of recognition back to our community, just to let people know that when you talk about this area, when you talk about Metroplex football, you can’t forget about us.”
On Twitter/X: @t_myah
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Texas
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