This is TPR's roundup of the latest headlines and news developments. It provides a succinct and clear summary of the stories TPR is following.
Today's weather: Expect a high today of 89 and a low of 62. This week will be warmer but the evenings will remain pleasantly cool.
The tropics: The National Hurricane Center continues to monitor Tropical Storm Oscar. After striking Cuba, it was expected to move northeast into the Atlantic. It posed no threat to the United States. The Atlantic hurricane season ends on Nov. 30.
Voters urged to cast ballots early
Early voting for the Nov. 5 election began today, and it runs through Nov. 1. Election officials expect more than 900,000 voters to cast a ballot by voting early, voting by mail, or on Election Day. Nearly 1.3 million people have registered to vote — a new record.
Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai urged voters to take advantage of the early voting period. He's worried long lines at polling places on the Nov. 5 could suppress turnout if voters get tired of waiting and leave.
Fifty-one early voting locations are open, and voters may vote at any one of them. Polls are open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. Hours vary over the weekend.
Election officials said a "tsunami" of votes will come in the mail. The last day to apply for a mail in ballot is Oct. 25.
Voting process made easier for blind voters
Bexar County has several options for voters who are blind.
Claire Oxley, a volunteer for the League of Women Voters, explained some of these options:
"One is to actually go to a polling place. They can request curbside voting. One of the voting judges will bring a machine to the car where they're parked, and then either the judge or some designated assistant who's with them can mark their ballot for them there. If they bring an assistant, like a friend or family member, it can be anyone except an employer or a labor union chief president, the assumption being that the employer or labor union chief might try to influence their choices."
Visually-impaired voters can also enter the polling place and request an accessible voting machine. "The accessible voting machine has two things," she explained. "It has a set of headphones and a Braille pad, and using the narration via the headset and the Braille pad, they're able to mark their ballot pretty independently."
Oxley said another option for blind voters is the Absentee Omni Ballot: "They’ve got to download and print up a form off the elections Department website, and that form is called a declaration to vote by mail because of blindness, and then they have to fill out the application for a ballot by mail. They need to mail those two things together to the elections department in order to receive a ballot by mail."
All voting machines in Bexar County for early voting and Election Day are equipped with braille for individuals who are blind.
Applications for absentee ballots and the Omni ballot is Oct. 25.
Business alliance endorses Prop C salary/tenure changes
The SA Business Coalition has endorsed Proposition C, a measure on the San Antonio ballot that would provide city council with the full authority to set the salary and tenure of the city manager.
A current cap put in place by a voter-approved 2018 amendment limited the city manager’s tenure to eight years and maximum salary of around $370,000.
The Coalition represents CEOs from numerous chambers of commerce and trade associations across the area.
The San Antonio Professional Firefighters Association announced earlier this month that it opposed the proposition.
South Texas may face a warm and dry winter
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issued its annual winter outlook last week. For Texas, temperatures are expected to be warmer than average this winter, and precipitation will be well below average.
NOAA explained that the La Niña weather pattern was to blame. La Niña shifts the polar jet stream farther north over North America, hampering the movement of cold fronts toward the southern latitudes.
For San Antonio, the chance of above average temperatures is 54%, with a 33% chance of normal temps and a 13% chance of below normal temperatures.
There was an 88% chance of below normal precipitation for the winter months in the San Antonio region.
Artistic creativity illuminates and celebrates East Side
Luminaria, San Antonio's annual night-time arts festival, spotlighted the East Side on Saturday.
Festivalgoers like Christina Harris were happy to see it come to the historic St. Paul Square on the East Side and celebrate its rich culture.
"These are the most African American-centric pieces that I've seen at Luminaria," she said. "We have a lot of Latin culture here in San Antonio. I'm Afro-Latina, so I love to see that represented. But in San Antonio, I feel like there is a divide between the Black and the Brown community. So whenever I see the merging of those cultures, I think it's really cool."
The festival included exhibitions honoring the women and men of the East Side and the evolution of Black music.
Boil water notice still in effect for parts of Laredo
Portions of Laredo remained under a boil water notice more than 10 days after it was first enacted due to the detection of E. coli in the water supply.
Citizens in north Laredo were removed from the boil notice on Saturday. South and Central Laredo under the service of the Jefferson Water treatment plant remained in the notice.
City officials said one test conducted over the weekend showed presence of E. coli. It added that more than 200 illegal or bad water connections have been found in the city so far, and external contamination may be part of the problem.
The City of McAllen deployed crews to assist Laredo with its water system.
