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The field for the District 2 Farmers Branch City Council race expanded this week.
Kristofer Cook and Brenda Brodrick filed applications to appear on the Nov. 5 ballot with City Secretary Stacy Henderson.
On July 16, the council formally accepted the resignation of current City Council member Martin Baird, who said he is moving to Flower Mound to be closer to his children’s schools. Baird said he will serve until the November election.
This special election will fill the vacancy for Baird’s unexpired term, which ends May 2026.
Tina Bennett-Burton, who previously served as council member for District 3 until redistricting placed her out of that district, filed her application soon after they became available. Due to redistricting, she is now eligible to run in District 2.
Brodrick has already made waves in her campaign by having her campaign flyers placed at homes on Veronica Street north of Valley View Lane.
Residents commented on it on social media, raising questions about the ethics violations.
The city secretary includes information about the legal requirements for political advertising from the Texas Ethics Commission in the candidate packet that each applicant for an election receives. The document provides the legal definitions of political advertising, what it must say and where it can and cannot appear and when a disclosure statement is required.
Brodrick said her flyer falls under the exceptions to the Disclosure Statement Requirement and is not an ethics violation.
“Texas Ethics Commission states that circulars costing under $500 to print are an exception and this falls under that exception,” she said.
“Political advertising is regulated by the state and does not provide the city with any enforcement regulations,” Henderson said.
The Texas Ethics Commission handles any questions about validity, inquiries or complaints
There is still time for others to file applications to be placed on the ballot. Interested candidates have until 6 p.m. Aug. 22 to file an application in person with the city secretary. The application includes minimum required verifiable signatures from within the district, including voter registration numbers, which can take several hours to verify once an application is filed.
A drawing for the order of names on the ballot will be held on at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 28, in the Council Chambers at City Hall. Branch Herald will also provide a candidate questionnaire to all candidates, which will be available on the Branch Herald’s website.
