BREAKING RECORDS!! 2016 Early Voting – Week 2 – Day 3

Here are the early voting totals to date and it’s official…. WE BROKE OUR OWN EARLY VOTING RECORD….

Here are the totals following yesterday’s voting.

For November 2, 2016

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 161 (105)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 147 (132)

Buckholts Community Center – 18 (28)

Thorndale VFW – 62 (36)

Ballot by Mail – 12 (13)

Limited – 3 (0)

Military – 0 (0)

Total – 403 (314)

Up-To-Date Totals

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 1948 (1722)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 1579 (1218)

Buckholts Community Center – 208 (170)

Thorndale VFW – 631 (359)

Ballot by Mail – 491 (295)

Limited – 19 (3)

Military – 19 (16)

Total – 4895 (3783)

The 2016 to-date total of 4895 has already broke the 2012 total number of 4752 early voters and we still have two days of early voting left. To add to those already high totals, we also have maintained pace at 30% ahead of 2012 numbers, and as of yesterday, over 33% of all the eligible voters in Milam County have already voted.

Someone made the point to me that some of those voters might be voting for the other side and there is truth in that; however, with the rather lethargic voting turnouts we’ve had the last few years, I am excited to see us moving in the right direction.

Keep up the awesome work!!

Two more days of Early Voting left, so get out there a vote. 

As a note, the polls will close early on Friday to allow everyone the opportunity to attend services for Porter Young. Our condolences go out to his family and many friends.

Thanks,

Bill

2016 Early Voting – Week 2 Day 2

After the Tuesday’s Early Voting polls closed, we are closer to going over the 2012 mark but still a bit shy; however, what a huge leap in voter turnout we are having overall this year. I got a call today from on the folks at the state party and they have taken notice of the vote here in Milam County. They are very impressed at our voter turnout considering there are no contested races on the local slate.

I told them, “that’s because Milam County Voters pay attention to what’s going.”

Here are the totals following yesterday’s voting.

For November 1, 2016

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 133 (147)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 153 (115)

Buckholts Community Center – 23 (20)

Thorndale VFW – 53 (36)

Ballot by Mail – 2 (8)

Limited – 0 (0)

Military – 0 (0)

Total – 364 (326)

Up-To-Date Totals

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 1787 (1617)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 1432 (1086)

Buckholts Community Center – 190 (142)

Thorndale VFW – 569 (513)

Ballot by Mail – 479 (282)

Limited – 16 (3)

Military – 19 (16)

Total – 4492 (3469)

Pretty good stuff folks. Well over a thousand more have voted in this year’s election than at the same time in 2012. Hopefully that holds steady.

I have received some more calls about faulty voting machines and such. Let me say once again that we have not had any erroneous votes, nor have we had any machines changing votes. I would offer that we all should check our ballots before we press the “Cast Ballot” button. As always, if you are not sure about something please ask one of the election officials to help you out, they are there to help you.

We have had some reports of voters coming to the polls with less that helpful attitudes and I would just ask each of us to take the time and give the election workers a chance. They are all hard-working folks who are out here to help us vote, not take any abuse.

Early Voting continues through Friday, November 4^th, followed by Election Day this coming Tuesday, November 8^th.

Thanks Again,
Bill

2016 Early Voting – Week 2, Day 1

A good start to the second week of Early Voting and as usual, the second week tends to slow down a bit. But regardless of the slowdown, we are still moving ahead and should break our records for Early Voting sometime today or tomorrow.

For October 31, 2016

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 176 (146)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 152 (128)

Buckholts Community Center – 18 (15)

Thorndale VFW – 65 (35)

Ballot by Mail – 21 (20)

Limited – 1 (2)

Military – 1 (2)

Total – 434 (348)

Up-To- Date Totals

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 1654 (1470)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 1279 (971)

Buckholts Community Center – 167 (122)

Thorndale VFW – 516 (287)

Ballot by Mail – 477 (274)

Limited – 16 (3)

Military – 19 (16)

Total – 4128 (3143)

Currently, nearly 29% of Milam County Voters have already voted in this year’s election. AND we are still above the 2012 totals by over 30% and on pace to easily break the 5,000-voter mark during Early Voting.

When I go to state function and meetings, one of the primary qualifications for a county in how the state and federal folks look at us is how many of us vote. The higher the voting percentage in a county the more interest those in office take in us.

In an election like this year’s election, this is where we make our mark. Are we always looked at as a small county, or as a county where an overwhelming majority of our population get out and vote to make a difference? This is the most important election in the history of our country and it’s up to us all to get out and vote to make that difference.

Early Voting is open until Friday, November 4^th. Election Day will be Tuesday, November 8^th throughout Milam County. I will list the polling places in the next few days, but remember, you can vote in any of the Milam County Locations…so go out and Vote!!!

Thanks,

Bill

2016 Early Voting – 1st Week Totals

As we enter the second week of Early Voting for this year’s General Election, here are the numbers. I am excited about these numbers as it truly shows how serious we are taking this election here in Milam County even without any locally contested races.

First Week Totals

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 1478 (1324)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 1127 (843)

Buckholts Community Center – 149 (107)

Thorndale VFW – 451 (252)

Ballot by Mail – 456 (254)

Limited - 15 (10)

Military – 18 (14)

Total – 3694 (2795)

As of right now, our voting numbers at staying around the 30% mark higher than in 2012.

After only the 1^st week of this year’s Early Voting, nearly 80% of those that voted early in 2012 have already voted.

Keep up the great work.

Early Voting continues in Milam County through Friday, November 4^th.

Thanks Again,

Bill

2016 Milam County Ballot

Someone emailed me to ask where they could find a sample ballot for the General Election.

I know it was printed in the newspapers and I believe it is online on the www.milamcounty.net site; however, I figured I would put it on this blog as well.

This is the ballot for Precinct 1 voters. The state and federal ballot is the same; however, each precinct has some precinct specific races and none of the local races are contested. If you’d like to see the list of Republicans running for local, state, and federal offices you can go to www.milamgop.org and check there.

Here are the two sheets that comprise the ballots. If you can't read on them you should be able to click on them to enlarge them.

If you have any questions or concerns you can always email us at milamgop@yahoo.com

Thanks,

Bill

2016 Early Voting - Day Three

As we enter Day 4 of Early Voting for this year’s General Election, here are the numbers. Once again they are impressive here in Milam County as they are throughout the state and country.

For October 26, 2016

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 257 (180)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 191 (154)

Buckholts Community Center – 37 (16)

Thorndale VFW – 68 (49)

Ballot by Mail – 41 (10)

Military – 0 (0)

Total – 594 (409)

Two Day Totals

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 763 (663)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 706 (512)

Buckholts Community Center – 89 (53)

Thorndale VFW – 243 (156)

Ballot by Mail – 410 (232)

Limited - 2 (0)

Military – 14 (12)

Total – 2227 (1628)

Those number are exceptional and show just how motivated Milam Country is this year to get out and vote in this HUGE Election.

As of right now, our voting numbers at nearly 37% higher than in 2012.

After only 3 days of this years Early Voting, 47 % of those that voted early in 2012 have already voted.

Keep up the great work and remember, if you can't make it during the week then there will be Early Voting this Saturday, October 29th, from 7 am to 7 pm at the County Clerk's Office in Cameron.

Thanks Again,

Bill

Early Voting - Day Two

Well the second day of early voting has concluded and the number of voters is really setting some new high water marks for the entire country and things are no different right here in Milam County.

Here are some of the stats here in Milam County after two days of Early Voting.

For October 25, 2016

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 245 (223)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 243 (177)

Buckholts Community Center – 36 (21)

Thorndale VFW – 91 (41)

Ballot by Mail – 4 (17)

Military – 0 (2)

Total – 621 (481)

Two Day Totals

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 506 (483)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 515 (358)

Buckholts Community Center – 52 (37)

Thorndale VFW – 175 (107)

Ballot by Mail – 369 (222)

Military – 14 (12)

Total – 1633 (1219)

As you can see we are on a tremendous pace to break some Early Voting Records here in Milam County, even without any contested races in the local elections. Currently, Early voting is alread7 33% more than in 2012, that's pretty impressive!!

On the issue of malfunctioning machines, refer to my blog from yesterday where I addressed this issue. In summary, the issue comes when a voter uses the straight-ticket selection. 

If you vote straight-ticket, the machine will need you to select "Cast Ballot" more than once in order to count your vote. In the past it only took selecting "Cast Ballot" once to do so; however, now it will require you to view the summary before actually casting your vote to make sure you actually want to use the straight-ticket selection.

As a rule of thumb, make sure you see the completion screen with the flag on it before you vacate the polling booth. If you don't see that Flag Screen then ask for help, the Election Staff will be more than happy to assist you.

So let's all get out and vote. vote Early or on Elections day but please do go out and vote.

Thanks,
Bill

Early Voting – Day One

As we all know, this year’s Presidential Election is anything but normal.

After looking at opening day totals, I would like to thank everyone for all their support. The first day or early voting saw large numbers of voting throughout the state and Milam County is no different.

Below I have posted the voting totals for yesterday below and the 2012 totals of Milam County Voters.

For October 24, 2016

Location – Voters (2012 Voters)

County Clerk’s Office – 261 (260)

Rockdale Juvenile Justice Center – 272 (181)

Buckholts Community Center – 16 (16)

Thorndale VFW – 84 (66)

Ballot by Mail – 365 (205)

Military – 14 (10)

Total – 1012 (738)

The total of 1012 voters casting ballots yesterday represents nearly 7 % of the eligible voters in Milam County. Not bad for the first day of voting

The number of voters voting yesterday was a 137% increase from the 2012 election and we have already received 15 more ballots by mail than the total received in 2012.

With these numbers showing up all over the state and country, it would appear 2016 may break all records for voter participation.

Early voting runs through November 4^th and the County Clerk’s office will be open from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm Saturday, October 29th for voting as well. You can vote at any of the locations.

There are still a limited number of Trump signs available, email me for directions on how to get one.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact me at milmgop@yahoo.com or at 254-482-0354.

Thanks,

Bill

Milam County Resolutions for the State Party Platform

Every two years, county political parties conduct Precinct Conventions and a County Convention in preparation for the State Convention held every two years. During the Precinct Conventions, Resolutions are considered and if passed, are forwarded to the County Convention.

During the March 19th County Convention, the Resolutions Committee considers the resolutions passed from the Precinct Conventions and they are presented to the Convention for passage. Those resolutions that are passed are then sent on to the Texas State Convention for consideration and possible inclusion in the State Platform.

This is why the Precinct and County Conventions are so important if you really want to be a part of the process of how the parties work. Below I have included the resolutions that were passed out of the most recent Republican Milam County Convention.

Thanks,

Bill

1.       Resolution One - Delegates to the RNC National Convention

be it resolved THAT for the Republican Party, no delegates having voting power within the nomination framework shall exist without being selected by or bound to a vote from the primaries or caucuses of the States which they represent; that no unpledged “super Delegates” currently exist or will ever be created to interfere with the states intent of the people.

2.       Resolution Two – Campaign Finance Account Limitations

BE IT RESOLVED THAT the Campaign accounts of candidates, whether elected or not, should only be allowed to be opened for a finite period of time rather than the current system which allows candidates to keep their campaign accounts open for an unlimited time period. Accounts may be open and funds may only be raised from a time period of four (4) months prior to the filing period for an election and that all accounts must be closed out in a timely manner following the end of a candidate’s campaign, regardless of the outcome.

3.       Resolution Three – Total Delegates to the State Convention

BE IT RESOLVED THAT the Convention of the Republican Party of Texas has become too cumbersome to manage properly with the current number of delegates allowed to the convention; therefore, the number of Delegates should be reduced to a more controllable number of delegates from the state with a system being similarly based on the number of gubernatorial votes from the counties; however, the numbers should then be reduced on a curve where the county with the largest number GOP Gubernatorial votes would receive fifty (50) delegates and the remainder of the counties would have their delegation determined based on a percentage of that same calculation with no county receiving less than three (3) delegates.  This process would, reduce confusion and disruption at the convention, lower the cost of the convention, provide a wider variety of venues for the convention to be held, and increase productivity of the event.

4.       Resolution Four – Congressional Term Limits

BE IT RESOLVED THAT service in the Texas State Legislature and the United States Congress should be controlled and restricted by a set of term limits. The terms of service would be limited to the length of time as laid out below.

Texas State Legislature – Total Service of eight (8) years.

Examples:

            Four (4) terms in the State House;

or Two (2) terms in the State Senate;

or Two (2) terms in the State House and one (1) term in the State Senate.

United States Congress – Total Service of twelve (12) years.

            Examples:

Six (6) terms in the U.S. House;

or Two (2) terms in the U.S. Senate;

            or Three (3) terms in the U.S. House and one (1) term in the U.S. Senate.

5.       Resolution Five – The Reorganization of the Texas House of Representatives

Be it Resolved that we urge the Texas Legislature to enact legislation amending the Texas State Constitution to allow the Texas Senate to continue to be districted based on populations, but require each member of the Texas State House of Representatives to represent two (and only two) geographically-attached counties defined by a like rural or urban population size, thus reducing the size of the House from 150 members to a total of 127 Members while presenting a geographically based house of the legislature.

Milam County GOP Convention - Be A Part Of The Process!!!!

Milam County GOP

Precinct/County Conventions

Date: Sautrday, March 19, 2016

Place: Yoe High School Preforming Arts Center Cameron, Texas

Time: 9:00 a.m.

Precinct Conventions start at  9:00 a.m. immediately followed by the County Convention.

For more information, contact Bill Whitmire, Milam GOP County Chairman at milamgop@yahoo.com or at 254-482-0354.

2016 Reagan Day Dinner - GET YOUR TICKETS BEFORE THEY'RE GONE!!

Hello Everyone,

We are really getting excited about this year’s Reagan Day Dinner to be held February 4^th at the Cameron VFW.  Tickets are going fast so get yours today!!

With this being an Election Year we are looking forward to our local Candidates being the main focus of our Dinner this year and letting them speak to us about their outlook on holding elected office here in Milam County.

State and Federal Candidates will also be in attendance and we look forward to hearing them speak with us; however, our local candidates are brushing up their stump speeches and readying themselves to share with us their positions and future plans once elected to office.

Plan on being there early for the Meet and Greet portion of the evening where you can best get to know the candidates and ask them the questions you want to know on a one-to-one basis. There will be a live and silent auction, AND the wonderful meal prepared by Jerry & Agnes Kostroun – The Best Part of the Evening!!

Tickets can be purchased by contacting me, or any of the Republican Women of Milam County. There will only be a limited number of tickets available at the door so get them early. The women will be selling tickets this Tuesday and Thursday at the Budget Host Inn & Suites in Cameron from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm those nights.

The Women are also asking anyone with sold tickets or ticket money to please turn those in on one of these two nights as well. Please let me know if you can’t make it those nights so we can make other arrangements.

And for our candidates and supporters, Auction Items are still being accepted….Hint, Hint, Hint!!

As Always, I appreciate all the support and look forward to seeing everyone soon.

Thanks,

Bill

Bill Whitmire

Chairman,

Republican Party of Milam County

254-482-0354

Convention Delegate Numbers Released

Got word today that we will have 11 delegate positions for the 2016 State GOP Convention this May 12-14 in Dallas. This means that we will have spots for 11 Delegates and 11 Alternates to go to the convention.

This year's convention is during a Presidential election so we will be selecting the delegates for the National Convention to be held in Cleveland, Ohio. This convention will be held July 18-21, 2016 and we will have the opportunity to send folks from here in Milam County is you wish to put you name in for consideration.

But first off it is important to remember that it all starts off with the Local Precinct and County Conventions to be help March 19th. Site of the convention has yet to be determined. That information is in work and should be announced in the next week.

This is the process so get involved!!

Thanks,
Bill