Cleveland City Council certifies May 3 special election; most charter amendments pass

The Cleveland City Council on May 5 formally canvassed the returns of the May 3 special election and certified the results, approving a majority of the proposed amendments to the city charter and adopting an ordinance to declare the election official.

The certification follows a roll call reading of each proposition and vote totals for many items. Propositions A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, J, K and L were reported as approved by a majority of qualified voters; Proposition I was reported as not approved.

The propositions would make a range of changes to the city charter. Among the revisions described during the reading: Proposition G would remove a newspaper-publication requirement for alternative meeting locations where state law allows; Proposition H would amend several sections to clarify the roles of the council and the city manager; Proposition I would, if enacted, have authorized the council to waive a city manager’s residency requirement by a two-thirds vote; Proposition J would align the manager’s budget-preparation duties with state law and remove duplicative provisions; Proposition K would update Charter Review Commission language and remove outdated year references; and Proposition L would make non-substantive updates including adding Montgomery and Sanderson counties to the city boundary description and replacing an outdated statutory reference with "the constitution and laws of the state of Texas," and updating the timing reference for the state of the city address.

Vote tallies recorded during the reading included: Proposition A — 92 for, 80 against; Proposition B — 204 for, 68 against; Proposition C — 205 for, 74 against; Proposition E — 76 for, 102 against; Proposition F — 74 for, 97 against; Proposition G — 38 for, 32 against; Proposition H — 234 for, 37 against; Proposition I — 10 for, 69 against; Proposition J — 232 for, 44 against; Proposition K — 215 for, 56 against. (Some tallies in the roll call were not clearly legible in the record provided and are reported as read or summarized in the council’s spoken certification.)

After completing the reading and the council’s review of the canvas, a motion was made to approve the ordinance formalizing the canvass. The motion to approve "20 25 0 5 11 o 1, canvassing the returns and declaring the results of the special election held on 05/03/2025 official" was made by Councilmember Warrick and seconded by Councilmember David; the motion carried.

The council stated that the official canvas of returns for the May 3, 2025 special election reflects the outcomes as read, and the meeting concluded with the council adjourning following the certification.