Local candidates to appear at forum next week, voter registration deadline Oct. 5

By LYNETTE SOWELL 

Cove Leader-Press 

The Copperas Cove Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau is hosting a Virtual Candidate Forum on Monday, October 5, from 6–8 p.m. 

The chamber will live stream the forum via its Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/CopperasCoveChamber/ and its YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCX41sVKhKgOBabt_EsuWf8w for the public to view. 

Questions for candidates are welcome, and must be submitted to the Copperas Cove Chamber of Commerce no later than 5 p.m. on Friday, October 2. For more information please contact the Chamber at 254-547-7571.

There are four candidates for Place 5 on the Copperas Cove city council, to include incumbent Marc Payne, along with three challengers, Vonya Hart, Gary Kent, and Theresa Deans. 

Hart is a newcomer to running for council, Kent is a former councilman who last ran for mayor against the late Frank Seffrood, and Theresa Deans ran against current Place 7 councilman Jack Smith, who is unopposed this year, for his first full term in office. 

With there being four candidates, the probability is higher for a runoff election if one of the four candidates does not achieve at least a 50 percent majority vote on Nov. 3.

Invitations have also been extended to United States Congressional candidates for House of Representatives District 25, to include incumbent Roger Williams (R-Austin) and Democratic Party challenger Julie Oliver, as well as candidates for Texas Senate District 24, incumbent Dr. Dawn Buckingham and Democratic Party challenger Clayton Tucker; Texas House of Representatives District 54 candidates Brad Buckley (incumbent, Republican) and Democratic challenger Keke Williams. 

Next Monday is also a date to note, with it being the last date to register to vote in the Nov. 3 election. 

Voter registration applications may be picked up at the Coryell County Tax Office located at 330 Cove Terrace Shopping Center, area post offices, libraries, Department of Public Safety and Texas Department of Human Services offices. 

Voter registration applications may also be requested by emailing tax_collector@coryellcounty.org. 

Voter registration applications may also be printed out at https://vrapp.sos.state.tx.us/index.asp.

Completed forms may be mailed to the office of Coryell County Voting Registrar or dropped off at the Coryell County Tax Office as noted above. 

Early voting starts on Tuesday, Oct. 13, one week earlier than usual, and will continue through Friday, Oct. 30. This year, early voting in Copperas Cove will take place at the Copperas Cove Civic Center, 1206 W. Avenue B.