Ennis Elections: Interesting And A Wee Bit Disappointing

I can’t imagine any person in town was able to avoid talking about the close races Ennis had over the weekend concerning the school district’s $48.985 million bond and the Ward 1 Commissioner’s seat, both decided by the slimmest of margins.
Being I work for the local newspaper it might be more common for our employees to discuss the goings on of the city, but I just refuse to believe these two elections were not the topic of water cooler conversation all across Ennis on Monday.
Plenty has been said regarding the 32-vote differential in the school bond election, including an excellent editorial in Monday’s edition – which for the record was not my work; I am not tooting my own horn. I’m sure the clouds of doubt are forming above the naysayers of the bond, questioning how accurate the vote count was in such a close race.
Those against the bond for whatever reason need to take from this year’s election that advertising and public support for your side is extremely important. The P.A.C. group in support of the bond were extremely active in getting the word out about why citizens should vote in favor of the bond, including signs abundantly placed in front yards and along rights-of-way, a bombardment of advertisements in local media outlets and letters to the editor written on a regular routine. The school district was also busy visiting local service clubs and city entities – like the Chamber of Commerce – to get the word out about the bond and recruit members to their following to get the number of votes required to approve the bond package.
It wasn’t until only a few days before the election that some publicity started picking up in an attempt to convince those tired of more bonds to pay for new buildings to be sure and stop by the polls and let their political voice be heard.
The group in favor of the bond’s passage was rewarded for spending the extra time and money necessary to get the bond approved. They will now reap the benefits of fewer children per classroom, better facilities and newer, updated technology at both new and old campuses.
In the other election between Byron Walker and James N. “Red” Sanders it wasn’t the outcome that was so shocking – although there was a big question mark over my head when asked who would win – but rather the amount of indifference that seemed to be going through the Ward 1 residents regarding who would be their voice at City Hall.
I made some phone calls following the election results being released and discovered there are 1,841 registered voters in Ward 1. This means 1,841 people cared enough about politics at one point in their lives to make their way to the Elections Office in Waxahachie and fill out the proper paperwork in order to do their democratic duty. So why did only 150 people actually cast their vote?
This accounts for merely 8.15 percent of the registered voters in that area of Ennis.
I’m not sure what to make of that statistic. Does it mean less than 10 percent of those willing to have a say about what goes on in Ward 1 cared enough to vote or is it more of a reflection on what they were voting on?
In a way this year’s elections were more interesting with less to choose from than last year’s City Marshal race when six candidates were campaigning for the top spot. Whatever your opinion regarding the outcomes of the city and school elections, it was most certainly a much-talked about and anticipated event.