SAN ANGELO, Texas — Texans will soon have the opportunity to make changes to the state constitution.
Beginning with early voting Oct. 23 and running through Election Day Nov. 7, citizens can make their voices heard on 14 possible constitutional amendments.
On Sept. 28, state representative Drew Darby held an open townhall forum at Stephens Central Library in San Angelo, 33 W. Beauregard Ave.
"There's 14 amendments and I'm gonna tell the folks that since we were formed as a state and have our constitution, there's been 700 previous amendments proposed over those 150 years and we've adopted 517 of them," Darby said. "These are 14 new ones so we'll put it up to the voters and let them decide if this is something that we need to amend the constitution and provide for."
Although the amendments often focus on complicated issues, much of the evening's discussion tried to create an easier way of understanding for the everyday voter.
Water, energy and broadband funding were topics at the forefront along with university resources and teacher retirement cost-of-living adjustments.
During the forum itself, Darby explained each of the 14 amendments, listing pros and cons, before opening the conversation up to questions and discussion.
"You know, sometimes you can put it on a piece of paper and it'll appear pretty simple but these are fairly complex issues that people need to understand," he said. "I think that the best voter is an educated and informed voter so that they're exercising their freedom to vote and to express their will on important issues and they have to have information to do that."
Typically, Darby said the voter turnout for this type of election ranges from 5-7%. He is hoping to increase those numbers for the upcoming polls.
"I want everybody to vote. I'd love to have a 100% turnout but it's not realistic," he said.
The forum was hosted not to influence voters one way or another, but rather to facilitate conversation.
Visit explanatorystatements to read more on the specific propositions.
