Destinee Milton, Rodney Hammer and Robin Deferrari are the three candidates up for election for Conroe ISD position 2 on Nov. 3.

What you need to know: Early voting begins Oct. 19 and runs through Oct. 30, according to the Texas Secretary of State's website. Election Day is Nov. 3, and polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Montgomery County locals have until Oct. 5 to register to vote.

The breakdown: On Sept. 9, the Willis ISD board of trustees reviewed a Lone Star Governance program presentation from Sue Clardy, the executive director of accountability, research and evaluations.

The district missed several internal educational goals for 2026, including third-grade early math and early literacy. While the 2026 goal was to have 58% of third-grade students reach the meets performance level on the STAAR reading assessment, the district only reached 46%.

Items worth mentioning: The district overachieved in other 2026 goals:

• For the second-grade MAP math test, 71% of students met district standards, exceeding the 60% goal.

• For graduating seniors, 26% demonstrated college readiness in math and English and earned a CCMR point, surpassing the 23% goal.

• A total of 16% of seniors earned an industry-based certification and a CCMR point, and demonstrated college readiness, beating the 11% goal.

Next steps: Clardy will bring recommendations for revised and new goals to the board in October.

Montgomery County commissioners met on Sept. 3 to review the 2025 road bond financial report and move several project awards forward.

What happened: The county reported $188 million in bond proceeds and $4.23 million in interest income as of Aug. 31, bringing total revenue to $192.23 million. Additional financial details include:

• Commissioners have allocated $166.7 million toward road projects, leaving $25.5 million for future allocations.

• The county has $67.6 million in cash remaining in its road bond account.

• There is $36 million in encumbered funds and close to $125 million spent so far.

Commissioners voted 5-0 to award a $4.4 million bid to Top Star Construction, LLC for the Precinct 1 Farrell Road Widening project. They also awarded a $3.9 million bid to Larry Young Paving, Inc. for the Old Plantersville Road project.

Three candidates are running to lead the Texas General Land Office in the Nov. 3 election.

The overview: Democrat Benjamin Flores and Libertarian Neill Snider are challenging Republican incumbent Dawn Buckingham for the seat.

Buckingham ran uncontested in the March Republican primary, Community Impact reported, while Flores won the Democratic primary. Snider was selected as the Texas Libertarian Party's candidate during an April nominating convention.

The context: The state land commissioner manages 13 million acres of state lands, with duties such as allocating disaster recovery funds, leasing state lands to generate revenue for the Texas Permanent School Fund, preserving state landmarks such as The Alamo and overseeing several veterans programs.

Looking ahead: Early voting runs from Oct. 19-30 in the midterm election, and Election Day is Nov. 3.