By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
Val Verde County voters said yes to an international bridge, but no to a $50 million
school district bond.
Three referenda regarding the city’s proposed international bridge and the school district
bond joined 17 proposed amendments to the Texas Constitution on the Nov. 4 election
ballot.
A total of 3,431 of the county’s 30,239 registered voters – 11.3 percent – cast ballots in
the Nov. 4 election.
County Clerk Teresa Esther Chapoy announced the election results outside the Val Verde
County Courthouse just after 9 p.m. Tuesday, about two hours after the polls closed at 7
p.m.
Voters defeated the school district’s bond issue proposition, with 1,429 voting for the
bond, and 1,889 voting against it.
Val Verde County voters passed the first question dealing with the international bridge,
Val Verde County Referendum 1, with 1,774 voters voting “for,” and 1,602 voters voting
“against.”
On Val Verde County Referendum 2, dealing with a bridge location north of the existing
international bridge, 1,602 voted “for,” and 1,743 voted “against.”
On Val Verde County Referendum 3, dealing with a bridge location south of the existing
international bridge, 1,302 voted “for,” and 2,031 voted “against.”
County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. said it will take some time to parse the election results
regarding the international bridge.
“It’s going to take a little bit to try to digest this, because (the results) are all over the
place, and when you look, it passed, by a hundred some-odd votes, but they don’t want it
on either side. They want it less on the south side than they want it on the north side, but
neither side wants it, so you want a bridge, but you don’t know where you want it,”
Owens said after the results were read.
Owens said he will likely address the issue during today’s meeting of Val Verde County
Commissioners Court.
This is how Val Verde County voted on the proposed constitutional amendments:
State Prop 1 – For: 2,504; Against: 870
State Prop 2 – For: 2,484; Against: 881
State Prop 3 – For: 2,387; Against: 979
State Prop 4 – For: 2,350; Against: 1,011
State Prop 5 – For: 2,238; Against: 1,085
State Prop 6 – For: 2,044; Against: 1,259
State Prop 7 – For: 2,945; Against: 422
State Prop 8 – For: 2,740; Against: 652
State Prop 9 – For: 2,374; Against: 975
State Prop 10 – For: 3,059; Against: 315
State Prop 11 – For: 2,613; Against: 763
State Prop 12 – For: 2,503; Against: 829
State Prop 13 – For: 2,669; Against: 709
State Prop 14 – For: 2,481; Against: 885
State Prop 15 – For: 2,856; Against: 540
State Prop 16 – For: 2,909; Against: 486
State Prop 17 – For: 2,333; Against: 1,001
The writer can be reached at delriomagnoliafan@gmail.com
