Election Day 101: Let the Live-Blogging Commence

Update, 11 p.m. I’m winding up now, but expect a story sometime next week on what you should do if you decide to be brave and run for school board.

And right now, I’d like to talk about voter turnout. See this map?
This is the voter turnout in the county. All that dark red? Those are precincts that had less than 10 percent turnout. If you look carefully, we can’t even get to bright yellow – which would be 50 percent.

But it’s even more dismal than that. In most precincts, turnout was less than 5 percent, and there were 127 precincts with less than one percent turnout.

I feel like I sound like a broken record, because I say this with every school board election. I cannot stress enough how bad it is that so few people decide something this important.

And I don’t know what the cure is, what we do to get more people to care about these races. I thought an embarrassment of qualified candidates might spur attention, but no. I thought discussing what is at stake would light a fire under some butts, but no.

So we get the officials we deserve. And sometimes we get lucky and get the ones we need, too. I hope this is more of the latter, and not the former.

Update, 10:30 p.m. A look at a few of the other 53 races – the contested ones that are pretty much final, anyway:

Addison Council, pick 3: Paul Walden, (18%), Al Angell (17%) and Jim Duffy (17%) are the winners.
Duncanville Mayor: David L. Green, 63%.
Garland ISD Trustee, place 2: Runoff between Johnny Beach (40%) and Charles Axe (37 percent)
Garland ISD Trustee, place 3: Linda Griffin, 60%
Grand Prairie Trustee, place 7: Runoff between Burke Hall (48%) and Mike Riley (29%)
Grand Prairie Trustee, place 6: Runoff between Steve Pryor (46%) and Gloria Carrillo (35%)
Irving ISD Trustee, place 5: A.D. Jenkins, 64%
Lancaster ISD, district 6: Robbie Johnson, 61%
Richardson ISD, place 3: Kris Oliver, 73%
Richardson ISD, Prop 1: 67% FOR
DCCCD, District 2: Phil Ritter, 54%
DCCCD, District 3: Possible runoff (86/92 reporting) between Dorothy Zimmerman (45%) and Tommy Reed (38%)
DCCCD, District 4: Runoff between Monica Lira Bravo (38%) and Martha Jo Talbot (33%)

Update, 10 p.m. Now that all 64 precincts have reported, it looks like there will be a runoff for District 2, between Dustin Marshall, who got 43 percent of the vote, and Mita Havlick, who ended up with 28 percent. However, with less than 50 votes separating Havlick and Suzanne Smith, a recount wouldn’t be surprising.

We can also call District 4 for Jaime Resendez, who commanded the lead in early voting and never let go. The same can be said in District 5, where Lew Blackburn held the lead all night. With 29 of 32 precincts reporting in District 7, I can also probably call the race for Audrey Pinkerton, currently has 59 percent of the vote.

I’ll be back in a bit to go over some other races, and provide a final total for District 7.
District 2, 64/64 precincts reporting: Dustin Marshall, 43%, 2,718 votes
Mita Havlick, 28%, 1,763 votes
Suzanne Smith, 27%, 1,717 votes
Carlos Marroquin, 1.3%, 83 votes
District 4, 48/48 precincts reporting: Jaime Resendez, 57%, 737 votes
Camille White, 31%, 408 votes
Omar Jimenez, 12%, 153 votes
District 5, 64/64 precincts reporting: Lew Blackburn, 52%, 1,197 votes
Marquis Hawkins, 39%, 902 votes
Linda Wilkerson-Wynn, 9.5%, 221 votes
District 7, 29/32 precincts reporting: Audrey Pinkerton, 59%, 1,557 votes
Isaac Faz, 41%, 1,094 votes

Update, 9:30 p.m. Let’s take a look at the Highland Park ISD school board races for a second, shall we?

HPISD Place 3, 14/14 precincts reporting: Kelly Walker, 70%, 2,894 votes
Bonnie Lammers, 30%, 1,269 votes
HPISD Place 4, 14/14 precincts reporting: Paul Rowsey, 68%, 2,816 votes
Bonnie Lammers, 32%, 1,333 votes
HPISD Place 5, 14/14 precincts reporting: Edward Herring, 69%, 2,885 votes
Anthony Scalia, 31%, 1,293 votes

Update, 9 p.m. With 63 precincts reporting, I am certain District 2 is heading for a June 18 runoff. Less clear is who his challenger will be, since Mita Havlick and Suzanne Smith have swapped places a couple of times tonight. More totals:
District 2, 63/64 precincts reporting: Dustin Marshall, 44%, 1,677 votes
Mita Havlick, 28%, 1,722 votes
Suzanne Smith, 27%, 1,669 votes
Carlos Marroquin, 1.3%, 80 votes
District 4, 28/48 precincts reporting: Jaime Resendez, 56%, 653 votes
Camille White, 32%, 369 votes
Omar Jimenez, 12%, 143 votes
District 5, 58/64 precincts reporting: Lew Blackburn, 52%, 1,145 votes
Marquis Hawkins, 39%, 852 votes
Linda Wilkerson-Wynn, 9%, 200 votes
District 7, 20/32 precincts reporting: Audrey Pinkerton, 60%, 1,451 votes
Isaac Faz, 40%, 977 votes

Update, 8:30 p.m. More totals:
District 2, 17 precincts reporting: Dustin Marshall, 47%, 1,677 votes
Suzanne Smith, 26%, 920 votes
Mita Havlick, 25%, 899 votes
Carlos Marroquin, 1.58%, 56 votes
District 4, 13 precincts reporting: Jaime Resendez, 58%, 514 votes
Camille White, 32%, 281 votes
Omar Jimenez, 10.6%, 94 votes
District 5, 19 precincts reporting: Lew Blackburn, 57%, 916 votes
Marquis Hawkins, 34%, 546 votes
Linda Wilkerson-Wynn, 9.5%, 154 votes
District 7: Audrey Pinkerton, 61%, 1,037 votes
Isaac Faz, 39%, 661 votes

Update, 7:30 p.m. Oh, by the by, I was dead serious about not wanting to hear from you about the state of Dallas ISD if you didn’t vote today. At about 3 percent voter turnout, you can all go pound sand.

Now for some more races.

Dallas County Community College District, seat 2:
Phil Ritter, 48%, 3,802 votes
Richard Morgan, 31%, 2,477 votes
Gene Robinson, 13%, 1,004 votes
J.C. Osborne, 8%, 636 votes

DCCD, seat 3:
Dorothy Zimmerman, 48%, 1,496 votes
Tommy Reed, 36%, 1,119 votes
Frank Millsap, 17%, 532 votes

DCCD, seat 4:
Martha Jo Talbot, 38%, 1,377 votes
Monica Lira Bravo, 32%, 1,166 votes
Brad T. Underwood, 30.52%, 1,117 votes

If you recall, Underwood and Zimmerman both had campaign materials sent out featuring a hairy man in a bra, warning about who uses what bathroom when. So you know, your vote wasn’t needed at all.

Update, 7:15 p.m. It’s looking like a real horserace for Addison City Council, where you vote for three people. In early voting, nobody has more than 20 percent.

David L. Green is leading in the race for Duncanville mayor, with 63.89 percent of the vote.

In Coppell ISD’s school board race, Leigh Walker has 74 percent of the early vote for place 1, Jill Popelka has 59 percent for place 2, and Anthony Hill has a slight lead of 52 percent for place 3. With a race that close, I would not at all be surprised that Hill faces a runoff election. The district also had a $1 billion bond election today, which is currently passing with 55 percent of the vote.

In contested Desoto ISD races, Kathy Goad (62 percent) leads the place 2 race. In Garland ISD races, Charles Axe (37 percent), Rob McAngus (23 percent) and Johnny Beach (39 percent) appear headed toward a runoff, if election day voting doesn’t change things.

Garland ISD seat 4 may also be runoff bound, since none of the candidates have more than even 40 percent of the vote right now. So far, Jed Reed is ahead by 37 percent of the vote.

More races to come.

Update, 7 p.m.: OK, here we go. Early voting results for Dallas ISD first, and then in a few I’ll take a quick look at some of the other 49 races going on in the area.

District 2: Dustin Marshall, 47.55%, 1,414 votes
Mita Havlick, 25.66%, 763 votes
Suzanne Smith, 25.35%, 754 votes
Carlos Marroquin, 1.45%, 43 votes
District 4: Jaime Resendez, 54.63%, 417 votes
Camille White, 33.29%, 246 votes
Omar Jimenez, 10.28%, 76 votes
District 5: Lew Blackburn, 59.52%, 719 votes
Marquis Hawkins, 28.89%, 349 votes
Linda Wilkerson-Wynn, 11.59%, 140 votes
District 7: Audrey Pinkerton, 63.62%, 841 votes
Isaac Faz, 36.38%, 481 votes

Update, 6:24 p.m.: You have about a half an hour left to go vote. At 7 p.m., we’ll start looking at early voting totals, but in the meantime, a few more voting totals reported from the field:

Northridge Presbyterian: 47o voters at around 6 p.m.
Preston Hollow UMC: 117 voters at 4:30 p.m.
Foster Elementary: 30 voters at 5:30 p.m.

Update, 5:10 p.m.: There is a little less than two hours until the polls close. If you haven’t voted, now’s the time to run over. I guarantee there will be no line. If you get there and there is a line of more than five people, I will personally send you a handknitted beer coozie (please allow 6-8 years for delivery).

Now, I have gotten a couple of things from some folks out in the field. The two pictures I’m about to show you are a tale of two districts, so to speak.

This picture is from Erin Johnston, and it’s of District 2 candidates Suzanne Smith and Dustin Marshall being grown ups.

This next one is a screen grab of another supporter in a different district, who decided to try to convince people to vote, but maybe next time we don’t intimate that if they don’t vote, your candidate’s opponent will win and all the kids will become criminals?

3 p.m.:  So I took a quick drive around town to check early voting totals, and a few more folks have messaged me or emailed me more totals.

Guys, seriously. It’s bad. So I have a very special message for the folks that aren’t voting today (and should be):

Do not ever come at me and say one bad thing about Dallas ISD. Your lack of concern now consigns you to the category of stuff and nonsense. In fact, my follow up question for the next year will be, “Did you vote in the school board election?” whenever someone says one bad thing about this district.  In short, put up, or shut your ever-loving pie hole.

Not voting today means you cede control of your small district and the big district to a handful of people. And I’m not even kidding when I say a handful of people. At 11:30, Pinkston High had 1 voter for the whole damned day. One. Uno.

This is unconscionable. Schools are just as much a part of the infrastructure of a city as sewer lines and roads. Without good schools and well-educated children who grow up to be adults, we don’t have a workforce that can attract companies to our city. We’ll continue to lose out to Plano and points north. Realtors – you do realize that a top-notch education from your neighborhood school means that prospective buyers have more to spend on a home, right? If they’re not paying private school tuition, that’s thousands more they have in their pocketbooks.

You have four more hours to vote. I suggest you do it.

Some turnout totals so far:

Hillcrest High School: 18 voters as of 9 a.m.
Pinkston High School: 1 voter as of 11:30 a.m.
Rosemont Elementary: 22 voters as of 11:30 a.m.
Kessler Park UMC: 173 voters as of 11:30 a.m.
Kidd Springs Rec: 80 voters as of 12:30 p.m.
Sunset High: 80 voters as of 1 p.m.
Franklin Middle School: 6 voters as of 1 p.m.
Mata Elementary: 31 voters as of 11:30 a.m.
Lochwood Library: 19 voters as of 1:00 p.m.
Samuell High School: 4 voters as of 1 p.m.
Lovers Lane UMC: 59 voters as of 1:30 p.m.
Spruce High School: 24 voters as of 1:30 p.m.
Anson Jones Elementary: 13 voters as of 1 p.m.

Early voting turnout coming up soon.