Voters will decide city and school district races across Denton County today, including the hotly contested Denton mayoral race.

Mayor Perry McNeill, a retired professor and engineer, is fighting for re-election against three challengers. They include former council member Mark Burroughs, a lawyer who has spent more than $45,000 to unseat the first-term incumbent.

Businessman Justin Bell, who lost to McNeill in 2006, and college student Darac Favre also are challenging the mayor.

Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

The election also will decide who fills three other Denton council seats.

Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Joe Mulroy, a businessman, faces a challenge from insurance salesman Jerry Mohelnitzky in his bid for a third term in at-large District 6.

Mayor Pro Tem Pete Kamp and business owner Mike Sutton are vying for the at-large District 5 position now held by Bob Montgomery, who is retiring because of term limits. Kamp, a sales businesswoman, is resigning her District 2 seat to seek Montgomery’s position.

Escrow officer Rudy Moreno and real estate businessman John Ryan hope to serve the final year of Kamp’s term in District 2, which covers northeast Denton. Only District 2 residents will vote in this race.

Area schools

In Aubrey, incumbent school board member Rusty Bland says construction projects are the most pressing issue facing the district, while his opponent Bruce Birdsong seeks more transparency in governance. The other incumbent whose term is up is running unopposed.

In Argyle, seven candidates filed for three at-large spots on the Argyle school board, where controversy over the superintendent’s termination has dogged the district for months. Incumbents Dr. Debbie Cantrell, Randy McKellar and John Schinske hope to keep their seats against challengers Kent Bateman, Kim Hinnrichs, Matt Portz and Denise Sizelove.

In Krum, where growth issues loom, six newcomers are vying for three seats on the school board. Mark Cofer, Kirby Hicks, Terry Knight, Bart Moore, Joe Vilicich and Ted Wiley Sr. are aiming to replace John Marchman, Mike Bullock and Ben Brown, none of whom sought another term.

Just one incumbent on the Lake Dallas school board has an opponent, where teacher and staff pay has become the focus. Corinth police Officer Lance Stacy faces incumbent Boyd Taylor, an area business owner, for Place 5. Two incumbents are running unopposed.

Similarly, in Pilot Point, Melinda Street has challenged incumbent Linda DeGraffenreid for Place 2 on the school board. Both see stabilizing the district’s finances as important, since the district faced a deficit several years ago. Their race has become the priciest among school elections while another incumbent runs unopposed.

Area towns and cities

Many area towns and cities canceled elections, as incumbents drew no opponents in Aubrey, Copper Canyon, Dish, Krugerville, Lake Dallas and Shady Shores. However, Lake Dallas will call a special election in November to replace Mayor Marjory Johnson, who has announced plans to move to Sanger and resign her post effective May 22.

In the other Lake Cities of Hickory Creek and Corinth, two incumbents did not seek re-election, drawing races for both of those vacancies. Charles Read and Paul Kenney are running to replace Rick Fengler on Place 4 in Hickory Creek. John Booher and Bob Holsomback have squared off to replace Ronnie Glasscock in Place 3 in Corinth.

Likewise, in Pilot Point, vacancies left by outgoing Mayor Jerry Alford and Place 4 council member Jay Melugin drew three candidates each. Neither race requires a majority vote to win. The top vote-getter between Ken Brixey, Janet Groff and Pearly Mae Simpson will be the city’s new mayor; similarly, Jerry Ford, Pete Hollar and Helga Nicodemus vie for Place 4 on the council. Turnout was slow until the last two days of early voting, when another 6 percent of registered voters cast ballots Monday and Tuesday.

Select races in Ponder and Sanger have failed to energize voters so far, where early voting turnout hovered around 3 percent. Sanger Mayor Joe Higgs faces a challenge from Joe Falls, as does council member Glenn Ervin from former City Manager Jack Smith and Larry Miller. In Ponder, Georgia Linam made a bid to return to the council, after being defeated last year, but she faces Ryan Rouse in the race.

Turnout was more vigorous in Krum, Double Oak, Oak Point and Argyle, where incumbent council members face challenges. Specific-purpose committees in Oak Point and Argyle were formed to support a slate of three candidates and oust select incumbents. Argyle’s race, overall, has been the costliest so far and inspired the highest voter turnout during early voting, 21 percent of the city’s registered voters.

In Cross Roads, Mayor Harv Kitchens faces his first challenge since the 2002 rough-and-tumble election that put him in the chair. The challenger is Burr Willcox. Voters energized by growth issues, including new sewer development, turned out to make their choice known for this tiny town of 600: 83 people, or about 14.8 percent of registered voters, cast ballots through Tuesday, the second-highest turnout in the area.

LOWELL BROWN can be reached at 940-566-6882. His e-mail address is lmbrown@dentonrc.com.

 PEGGY HEINKEL-WOLFE can be reached at 940-566-6881. Her e-mail address is pheinkel-wolfe@dentonrc.com.