2026 Midterm Election
- When is Early Voting? Early voting begins Monday, Oct. 19 and runs through Friday, Oct. 30.
- When is Election Day? Tuesday, Nov. 3, is Election Day and polling locations will be open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. You can vote if you’re in line by 7 p.m. on Election Day.
- Federal races: (U.S. Senate, U.S. House)
- State races: (Governor, Lt. Governor, Attorney General, Comptroller, GLO Commissioner, Agriculture Commissioner, Railroad Commissioner, State Board of Education, Texas Senate, Texas House)
- County races: (Collin, Dallas, Denton, Tarrant, Rockwall)
- Judicial races: (Texas Supreme Court, Court of Criminal Appeals, Court of Appeals, District Courts, County Courts, Justice of the Peace Courts)
- Bonds and Props: There are several bonds and propositions on ballots; they’re broken down here by schools, municipalities and counties.
- Previous results: Here are the results from the March primary and runoff.
The McKinney Independent School District is asking voters to weigh in on a $500 million bond package to build and improve schools and buses, acquire instructional technology equipment, improve the district’s stadium and pool and increase the ad valorem tax rate.
The tax rate ratification would result in an increase in the district’s maintenance and operations tax revenue if approved. The actual ballot language for each proposition is below. Voters will be asked to consider whether they are “For” or “Against” each proposition.
Proposition A
Ratifying the ad valorem tax rate of $1.0664 per $100 valuation in the McKinney Independent School District for the current year, a rate that will result in an increase of 4.4222 percent in maintenance and operations tax revenue for the District for the current year as compared to the preceding year, which is an additional $9,142,763.
Proposition B:
The issuance of $430,950,000 of bonds by the McKinney Independent School District for designing, constructing, renovating, improving, upgrading, updating, acquiring, and equipping school facilities, the purchase of the necessary sites for school facilities, buses and vehicles and the levying of a tax sufficient to pay the principal of and interest on the bonds.
Proposition C:
The issuance of $62,000,000 of bonds by the McKinney Independent School District for instructional technology equipment and the levying of a tax sufficient to pay the principal of and interest on the bonds.
Proposition D:
The issuance of $4,500,000 of bonds by the McKinney Independent School District for designing, renovating, improving, upgrading, updating, acquiring, and equipping the existing McKinney High School training pool, and the levying of a tax sufficient to pay the principal of and interest on the bonds.
Proposition E:
The issuance of $2,550,000 of bonds by the McKinney Independent School District for designing, renovating, improving, upgrading, updating, acquiring, and equipping existing stadium facilities and related infrastructure and the levying of a tax sufficient to pay the principal of and interest on the bonds.
The district has more on the propositions here.
HOW ARE TEXAS SCHOOL DISTRICTS FUNDED?
Texas school districts are funded by three sources: Federal money, state money and local taxes. Local taxes comprise two tax rates, Maintenance and Operations (M&O) and Interest and Sinking (I&S), set by the school board. M&O is the money used to pay for the day-to-day operations of a school district, including salaries and professional development, utilities, curriculum, building maintenance, and student services. I&S is the money generated from bonds to pay for new buildings, renovations, security, buses and other large expenses. The I&S tax rate is used to repay the bonds. Funding approved for M&O and I&S projects can’t be mixed.
HOW CAN BOND MONEY BE SPENT?
Bond money can only be spent on capital projects like new buildings, renovations, security upgrades, land acquisition, and other non-recurring costs. It can’t be spent on salaries, staff, utilities, fuel, or other recurring costs. The money repaid from a bond will include interest over time, generally 30 years. Many districts try to repay their bonds early to save on the interest obligation.
WHAT IS A VATRE?
VATRE stands for Voter Approval Tax Rate Elections. If a district needs to increase funding for salaries, daily operating expenses, or other recurring costs, then they have to ask voters to approve of an increase of the M&O Voter Approved Tax Rate (VATR). Many districts hold VATREs to increase M&O funding because they have a deficit. Prior to the 2025 legislative session, state legislators went six years without increasing funding for schools, and with inflation and the addition of unfunded mandates, such as adding an armed officer on each campus, many school districts say they are strapped for cash.
‘THIS IS A PROPERTY TAX INCREASE’
A state law requires Texas school districts to include the statement, “This is a property tax increase,” on every ballot proposition. That is true even if the proposition does not increase the tax rate. In their proposals, many Texas school districts say they can issue bonds without increasing the I&S rate. This is often done by taking on new bond debt as old, declining debt is paid off. Read the district’s proposal thoroughly to understand whether voting for the bond package will result in a tax rate change. Even without an increase in the tax rate, changes in property tax appraisals could result in a larger tax bill for the property owner.
Early voting for the midterm election runs Monday, Oct. 19 through Friday, Oct. 30. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3.
