House Bill No. 540 introduces a new subchapter to the Election Code of Texas, specifically focusing on the implementation of preferential voting in nonpartisan elections for municipalities and independent school districts. The bill allows the governing bodies of these entities to authorize preferential voting by a majority vote. It outlines the procedures that the Secretary of State must establish to facilitate this voting system, which enables voters to rank candidates in order of preference. If no candidate receives a majority of the highest favorable rankings, the candidate with the fewest votes will have their votes reassigned to the next preferred candidate, continuing until a candidate achieves a majority.

Additionally, the bill specifies that no primary elections or runoff elections will be held for offices governed by this subchapter. The Secretary of State is tasked with setting the filing deadlines for candidates seeking a place on the ballot for these elections. The provisions of this act are set to take effect on September 1, 2025.

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