Early Voting Starts Monday for Senate District 28 Special Election

Members of the Texas Retired Teachers Association (TRTA) who live in Senate District 28 have the opportunity to vote in a special election to replace Senator Robert Duncan beginning Monday, August 25. Early voting will continue through Friday, September 5. Please note that there will be no early voting on Monday, September 1 due to the Labor Day holiday. The official election day will be held on Tuesday, September 9.

Many TRTA members are quite familiar with Senator Duncan and his work to improve and protect retirement benefits for Texas public educators. Last session, Senator Duncan authored Senate Bill 1458, which provided the first permanent cost-of-living increase for 200,000 retirees since 2001.

Several candidates are vying to fill Duncan’s seat. They are: Jodey Arrington, Republican; E.M. Garza, Republican; Delwin Jones, Republican; Kerry Douglas McKennon, Libertarian; Charles Perry, Republican; and Greg Wortham, Democrat.

Many of our members have requested that we provide contact information for the Senate District 28 candidates. If you live in SD 28, please consider contacting the candidates and asking them questions about their support of the Teacher Retirement System (TRS) defined benefit plan and the TRS-Care retiree health insurance program.

Ask if they will support maintaining the provisions laid out in Senate Bill 1458 that increased the state’s contribution to the TRS pension fund to 6.8%. Ask if they support providing additional funds to help resolve the TRS-Care funding shortfall of nearly $1 billion. Ask if they support a secure retirement for our state’s 300,000+ retirees and 1,000,000 pre-retirees!

If a candidate asks you for more information, feel free to provide them with the TRS-Care Fact Sheet found in the most recent issue of The VOICE or have them contact TRTA at info@trta.orgor 1.800.880.1650.

Candidate Contact Information (candidates are listed in alphabetical order):

Jodey Arrington
4407 13th Street
Lubbock, Texas 79416
806.319.0909

E. M. Garza
303 North 7th Street
Wolfforth, Texas 79382
806.729.6719

Delwin Jones
2129 54th Street
Lubbock, Texas 79412
806.789.6899

Kerry Douglas McKennon
2101 Avenue D
Petersburg, Texas 79250
806.667.0586

Charles Perry
4007 109th Street
Lubbock, Texas 79432
806.470.1341

Greg Wortham
311 E. Avenue C
Sweetwater, Texas 79556
325.235.2190

Members, we cannot stress enough how important it is that you vote in this election if you live in Senate District 28. Make a plan now to vote early! Consider carpooling with your fellow retirees or friends and family members. During the early voting period, you can vote at any polling location. On the official day of the election, you must vote at your assigned precinct.

Thank You!

TRTA has been busy this summer conducting state committee meetings and planning ahead for the 84th Legislative Session. Last week, the State Legislative Committee met in Austin to discuss strategy for protecting the TRS-Care retiree health insurance program, among other issues.

Watch a recap of the meeting by viewing this video! Feel free to share the video with your fellow retirees and with active educators, who will be impacted by any changes made the program upon their retirement.

Thank you for being a member of TRTA! Remember, you are a valued member of our organization, and your vote is valuable! Use your power and vote!

If you are not a member of TRTA and want more information about joining, please contact us at 1.800.880.1650. Follow us on Facebook! Visit our YouTube channel for regular video updates!

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