Despite More Than 36,000 Registered Voters, Voter Apathy Prevails in Maverick County and Decides Elections
Voter Apathy Has Decided Maverick County Elections for Too Long
By Jose G. Landa
According to Maverick County Elections Department Director, Marianna Flores-Garcia, Maverick County has slightly over 36,600 plus registered voters.
For more than a decade, voter apathy has prevailed and remained one of the most powerful forces in Maverick County politics. People just simply do not participate in the cherished and privileged constitutional right to vote in our democracy.
It does not appear on the ballot, purchase political signs or attend campaign rallies. Yet election after election, thousands of registered voters remain home and allow a relatively minority of the population to decide who controls local government and how millions of taxpayer dollars are spent and managed.
An examination of voter registration and election results shows that fewer than half of Maverick County’s 36,600 plus registered voters participated in any major November election between 2016 and 2024.
Approximately 44.3 percent participated in the 2016 presidential election. Turnout fell to about 34.3 percent during the 2018 midterm election. It reached approximately 46.4 percent in 2020 before dropping to only 28.1 percent in 2022. Approximately 43.8 percent participated in the 2024 presidential election.
Across those five elections, Maverick County had approximately 165,212 combined voter registration opportunities. Only about 65,038 votes were cast in the principal statewide races.
That represents an average participation rate of approximately 39.4 percent.
In practical terms, roughly two out of every five registered voters made decisions affecting the entire community while the remaining three surrendered their voices.
The situation becomes more compelling during primaries, runoffs and local elections.
Participation can fall substantially below general election levels, allowing a few thousand people to determine who controls offices responsible for public safety, healthcare, infrastructure, taxation and millions of dollars in public funds.
The May 2026 Democratic primary runoff for Maverick County judge provided another example. Gerardo “Jerry” Morales and Ramsey English Cantu received a combined 6,260 votes. A relatively small fraction of the county’s approximately 36,600 plus registered voters effectively selected the Democratic nominee for one of the most powerful positions in county government.
Voter disengagement is especially troubling as Eagle Pass and Maverick County face serious questions involving government spending, budget reductions, public safety funding, Fire and EMS services, public contracts and the management of public money.
Maverick County is currently experiencing the negative effects of financial decisions that have left the government with limited resources and difficult choices.
Commissioners have confronted budget shortfalls, proposed reductions in public safety spending, the loss of significant revenue and a Fire and EMS debt to the City of Eagle Pass reportedly exceeding $3 million.
Questions have also emerged over depleted financial reserves that could have helped the county respond to emergencies and unexpected expenses.
Employees and residents may now face the consequences through fewer resources, possible budget reductions and uncertainty surrounding essential services.
The City of Eagle Pass is facing its own concerns involving administrative oversight, financial controls and communication with the elected City Council. Recent controversy involving the movement or reclassification of millions of dollars among city funds demonstrated why elected officials must actively examine financial decisions rather than simply depend on information provided by the administration.
A lack of oversight does not prove corruption. However, weak financial controls, limited transparency and insufficient questioning can create conditions where waste, favoritism or corruption may occur without being immediately detected.
The responsibility for oversight belongs to elected officials, but the responsibility for choosing those officials belongs to the voters.
Our community has traveled down a dangerous road before.
Beginning in 2012, a sweeping federal public corruption investigation exposed bid rigging, bribery and kickback schemes involving Maverick County contracts. The investigation and related cases eventually resulted in charges and convictions involving numerous elected officials, county employees, contractors and business people.
The investigation reached all four county commissioners serving during that period, along with other officials, employees and contractors. Federal prosecutors documented schemes in which county contracts were manipulated and kickbacks were paid in exchange for public work.
It became one of the darkest chapters in Maverick County government and damaged public confidence for years.
The lesson should have been permanent.
When residents stop watching, asking questions and voting, government does not stop operating.
Budgets are still approved. Contracts are still awarded. Taxes are still collected. Public money is still spent and decisions affecting thousands of families are still made.
Low voter participation does not automatically cause corruption, and the reasons people do not vote are complicated.
Some residents face transportation problems, demanding work schedules, limited access to information or distrust in the political process.
However, continued nonparticipation weakens accountability. It allows organized political groups and small voting blocs to exercise greater influence than the broader population.
Voting is not merely a constitutional right. It is a civic duty and one of the strongest tools residents possess to demand transparency, accountability and responsible government.
Residents cannot complain about taxes, budget problems, deteriorating services, questionable contracts or limited transparency while repeatedly surrendering their most important opportunity to create change.
Our history has already demonstrated what can happen when oversight fails and the public becomes disengaged.
Changing the future will require residents to register, study the candidates, examine the issues, attend public meetings, demand answers and vote.
Democracy does not fail only when someone takes away the right to vote.
It also weakens when citizens voluntarily choose not to use it.
All Maverick County registered voters are highly encouraged to exercise their powerful right to vote in the upcoming November 3, 2026 Election, and in all elections.
