Hawkins wins District 4

With final voting results counted, three incumbents retained their seats and a local coffeehouse owner is set to join the Denton City Council. Local businessman Joey Hawkins, 38, won in District 4, beating Phil Kregel, 28, by a margin of more than a 2-1.

School trustees retain their seats

Voters re-elected three incumbents to the Denton school board Saturday. Trustees Glenna Harris in Place 3, Mia Price in Place 4 and Charles Stafford in Place 5 will retain their seats on the seven-member board after each receiving more than two-thirds of the votes in their respective races.

Voters approve city gas utility

Denton voters approved a proposition that gives the city authority to sell natural gas to nonresidential customers in the industrial park on the city’s west side.

Amason defeats Hanson in Corinth council contest

Incumbent Bruce Hanson, 47, lost by eight votes to newcomer Mike Amason, 32, in the only contested race in Corinth. Amason defeated Hanson 329 votes to 321.

Tankersley wins seat on Lake Dallas school board

Courtney Tankersley was elected to a full term in Place 7 on the Lake Dallas school board Saturday in the district’s first contested race in five years.

Few cast early ballots

Denton County voters had only trickled into the polls when early voting ended Tuesday. As of Tuesday afternoon, a little more than 7,500 of the county’s estimated 380,000 voters had cast ballots for local elections since April 29.

Election Day Polling Locations

Here are the polling sites for area city and school district elections, listing the town and precinct. On election day, voters must cast their ballots at the location designated for their precinct. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday.

Early voting in slow motion

Denton County’s early voting turnout has been slower than the coming of spring. County elections administrator Frank Phillips said that as of noon Saturday, a little more than 4,500 of the county’s estimated 380,000 registered voters had cast ballots since Monday in local elections.

Argyle’s only contested race to settle Place 2

ARGYLE — The race for the Argyle Town Council Place 2 seat pits incumbent David Wintermute against Kay Jenkins Teer, who served on the council in the 1990s.

Krum Mayor seeks another term

KRUM — Mayor Terri Wilson is seeking re-election this May and she is opposed by Larry Lamonica, who served as mayor before Wilson unseated him in 2007.

Early voting begins today in county

Early voting kicks off today in Denton County. Numerous races fill area ballots, giving people the opportunity to shape the development of their cities by voting on everything from city and school district leaders to propositions.

Budget cuts on minds of DISD candidates

Three places on the Denton school board are on the ballot for the May 11 election.

On the ballot: Municipal Elections

On the ballot: School Districts

On the ballot: Special Districts

Early Voting Sites

Early voting will be conducted at the following locations from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. May 6-7:

School board candidates speak out on state testing

Denton school board candidates shared their views on the STAAR test, school finance and budget cuts at election forums this week.

Council forum focus shifts

Denton City Council hopefuls sparred in their last forum of the political season at an event hosted Thursday night by the local chapter of the League of Women Voters.

Two seek mayoral office in Justin

JUSTIN — The race for the mayor’s seat in Justin has Mayor Greg Scott and City Council member Diane Rasor vying for the city’s top office.

Krum plans bond votes

KRUM — City officials are leaving the issuance of $4.6 million in tax bonds up to the voters, who will decide May 11 on five propositions that include the construction of a new fire station and library.

Newcomer challenges incumbent for Place 5

CORINTH — The election in Corinth places City Council member Bruce Hanson and newcomer Mike Amason against each other in a race for the Place 5 seat. Both candidates have similar goals that call for the city to prepare for growth and connect with and listen to its residents.

District 4 to bring new face to council

Neither Phil Kregel nor Joey Hawkins is new to the political scene, but neither has ever held elected office either. Now, they are squaring off for the District 4 seat on the Denton City Council. Both hope to replace outgoing council member Chris Watts, who is leaving in May.

Denton City Council District 4 candidates

Alliance’s forum draws more than 50

By the time the audience finished trickling in, more than 50 people — including some present and former City Council members — listened to current council hopefuls in a forum organized by the Denton Neighborhood Alliance at City Hall Thursday night.

Funding details released

The first round of campaign finance reports for the May 11 election show the race for support, and for spending, is on its way.

Two vying to represent District 2

A Denton landlord and retired wildlife biologist Alfredo F. Sanchez is challenging City Council incumbent Dalton Gregory, a retired educator who is seeking his third term serving District 2.

Denton City Council District 2 Candidates

Candidate forums scheduled

Denton voters will have several opportunities to hear city and school district hopefuls respond to questions during candidate forums in the next three weeks.

Denton City Council District 3 Candidates

Denton City Council District 3 candidates profiles, finance reports and voting history

Three vie for Denton’s District 3 council seat

A small forum for both school and city candidates at Robson Ranch this week underscored the diversity of constituents in Denton’s far-flung District 3, as well as their wide-ranging interests, from students who live on or near the University of North Texas campus and the older adults at Robson Ranch to residents in some of the city’s most established neighborhoods.

Sheriff William Travis gives update

Denton County Sheriff William Travis presented his version of the “state of the union address” before Commissioners Court on Tuesday morning. The report, Travis said during a phone interview, was to present what had been going on within the Denton County Sheriff’s Office since he took over Jan. 1.

City Council candidates participate in first forum

Denton City Council candidates differentiated themselves on a couple of key topics during the first forum of the season, conducted this week by the Denia Area Community Group. Former City Council member Linnie McAdams served as moderator Monday night, rounding up questions from the audience that ranged from topics in the headlines to those bandied about the water cooler. The candidates’ answers in both types of topics allowed some of the sharpest differences to emerge among them.

Mateer to speak at Republican meeting

Jeff Mateer, general counsel of Liberty Institute, will be the featured speaker at the Thursday monthly meeting of the Denton County Republican Party. He is expected to address religious liberty.

Group meets with Obama

Congressman Michael Burgess, R-Lewisville, can make quick work counting how many times Texas’ congressional delegation has spent time with the president since Barack Obama was first elected. And that includes Wednesday’s closed-door session the Texas delegation had with President Obama on the budget, immigration and gun control.

Coleman proposes financial disclosure

After publishing his own, most recent campaign finance report on the Precinct 1 website, County Commissioner Hugh Coleman proposed this week that the other commissioners do the same.

Bills lay out how to close centers

A pair of bills filed Friday with the Texas Legislature would give the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services the authority to close or consolidate any of its 13 state-supported living centers.

Argyle politics could simmer down

ARGYLE — The decisions of three Argyle residents to withdraw from the town’s mayoral race has left the seat unopposed, and officials hope the change will end the conflicts in Town Hall, many of which have revolved around the current mayor.

Heidi Group founder to speak at GOP club

Author Carol Everett, the founder and president of the Heidi Group, will be the featured speaker at today’s meeting of the Denton Republican Women’s Club.

Brendan Carroll files for City Council seat

Longtime Denton resident and business owner Brendan Carroll filed Monday to run for District 3 of the Denton City Council. Carroll, 43, is the owner of a private information technology company, Blooming Technologies. A native of Wichita Falls, Carroll moved to Denton with his family in 1984 and later graduated from Denton High School.

Local leaders press issues with legislators

Representatives from Denton County are working to address a host of concerns related to the city, county and education. The delegation of officials is in Austin for Denton County Days, which began Monday and runs through today as part of the 83rd session of the Texas Legislature.

New precinct lines expected to be finalized

Elections officials said they expect to finalize this week new precinct lines that reflect redistricting for the city of Denton. Once the final maps are prepared, Frank Phillips, county elections administrator, says the county commissioners’ court must approve them, which will likely be scheduled for the first week of March. Soon after, city voters can expect to see their voter registration cards in the mail with new precinct numbers.

Local Legislature members appointed to committees

With the 83rd Texas Legislature in full swing, local representatives say they are anxious to tackle their committee assignments. “Serving is an honor,” said freshman Rep. Pat Fallon, R-Frisco, who was just elected to the House this past November for the new District 106. “The work you do on committee is very, very important.”

Abbott to address county GOP event

The Denton County Republican Party announced Monday that Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott will speak at a fundraising luncheon at noon Wednesday at the Oakmont Country Club, 1901 Oakmont Drive in Corinth.

Hawkins plans run for council

Joey Hawkins, owner of Jupiter House Coffee, has filed preliminary paperwork for a City Council campaign and confirmed that he plans to run for Denton’s District 4.

GOP seeks nominee for open constable position

The Denton County Republican Party is hard at work finding a constable for Precinct 1. Constable Jim Dotson died in December after more than a year battling cancer. Pat Taylor, the chief deputy, has been serving as constable in the interim as officials search for a replacement.

Solemn but celebratory

The Denton County Commissioners Courtroom was filled to the brim New Year’s morning as friends and family turned out to support the 12 new and returning elected officials as they were sworn into office. Commissioners, judges, constables, a tax assessor and a new sheriff took their turns pledging to uphold the duties of their office to repeated rounds of applause from the people gathered there.

Year in review: Voters, leaders buffeted by change

Effects of the weak state and national economy notwithstanding, significant changes came in 2012 as Denton area residents voted or advocated for them. However, for changes residents have sought to Denton’s gas well rules since 2009, another year of advocating, cajoling, pushing, arguing, demonstrating and wheedling brought scant progress. A moratorium adopted in early 2012 continues into 2013.

Race draws many new voters

Denton County gained 44,200 new registered voters this presidential election. More new voters can mean more long lines.

Enthusiasm, concerns mark Obama’s triumph

Denton County voters flocked to the polls Tuesday to elect a president, bringing concerns such as women’s rights, health care, education and the economy. Party affiliations aside, voters said the election represented how America would be defined in the next few years.

Officials report strong turnout on Election Day

After 10:30 p.m. Tuesday some voters in Denton County were still filling out their ballots. “Dan F. Long Middle School in Carrollton and some places in Frisco were very heavily trafficked,” said Frank Phillips, the Denton County elections administrator.