NEDERLAND, Texas — Election Day in Southeast has arrived, and Southeast Texans are heading to the polls during the last day of voting to have their voices heard.
Many hot races are on the ballot including the one for the Nederland City Council Ward One seat. Bret Duplant, Blaine Seymour and Curtis Stratton are battling for the seat.
Talmadge Austin is currently the representative for Ward One but he is not running this election season.
From infrastructure to bringing business to Nederland, each candidate has their ideas on how they can improve things for the city and help the council make tough decisions.
Stratton is a longtime business owner. He wants to bring big business to Nederland.
"A good way for me to give back to a community that has supported our business over the past 40 years, so this is my time to in turn to give back to the citizens who have been so welcoming to us as a business here," Stratton said.
More than 18,000 people live within the city limits of Nederland and have different things that push them to vote. A hot topic for 20-year-old Seymour is infrastructure.
"Mostly flooding and infrastructure," Seymour said. "Right now, we have big problems on that if you look at the culverts. I went around town multiple times.
Duplant is the president of the economic development corporation. He feels his experience can speak for itself as to why he is the most experienced to represent ward one.
"I was a school board member for the Catholic Diocese in Beaumont and helped to improve enrollment stats for that school district," Duplant said. "I've worked with the Nederland Economic Corporation for the last almost four years."
Ward one is a mostly residential area along the north side of the city. All three candidates are promising to strongly represent the ward they call home.
The deadline to register to vote in the municipal election was April 6, 2023. Early voting began April 24, 2023 and will run through May 2, 2023.
The municipal election will be held on Saturday, May 6, 2023, from 7 a.m. - 7 p.m.
GET NEWS & WEATHER ALERTS | Download the 12News App to your mobile device