What Am I Voting For?

When going into the election booth to place your votes for each official that you see as fit to take on each specific role. However, if we are being honest, most of the time we have no idea what these candidates will be in charge of once they are elected. I know that whenever I read about the different candidates that are available to vote for in an upcoming election, I typically have little to no idea what the position they are running for involves. This affects those who are trying to find out which candidates they would like to vote for in an upcoming election. How can one properly vote for someone to take on a role that the voter has no idea what that role will end up entailing. I’m going to go ahead and explain some of the more obscure electable positions in government that we vote for on Election Day.

State auditors (sometimes referred to as state comptrollers or state controllers) are executive officers of U.S. states who serve as auditors and comptrollers for state funds. In some states the auditor is an elected office, while in others auditors are appointed by the state governor or state legislature. The state auditor is to conduct audits, investigations, and reviews of entities receiving state funds, including state agencies, departments, and universities. While these fiscal matters are the primary business of these officers, their audit skills are frequently put into practice for other purposes. Knowing this, you can now either vote Democrat or Republican for this candidate keeping in mind their fiscal responsibilities towards the state.

The Texas Railroad Commission is a state executive agency in the Texas state government, and citizens vote for the Texas Railroad Commissioner. Despite its name, the commission does not have much of anything to do with railroads but instead works by overseeing the oil and gas industry, gas utilities, pipeline safety, safety in the liquefied petroleum gas industry, and surface coal and uranium mining. In short, the office of Railroad Commissioner, in Texas, is responsible for environmental dealings and such within the state that affect both the ecology and economy of the state.

The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts is the chief financial officer of the state government. This elected official is responsible for maintaining the finances of the state. The comptroller also acts as the tax collector, chief accountant, chief revenue estimator and chief treasurer for the state. Of all these responsibilities, the comptroller’s main duties lie in collecting any and all tax revenue that is owed to the state of Texas.

The Texas State Board of Education is composed of 15 members elected to four-year terms to represent one of the state's 15 education districts. The board is responsible for coming up with policies and setting academic standards for Texas public schools, and oversees the state Permanent School Fund and selects textbooks to be used in Texas schools. Those who are on the board are pretty much the ones who are in charge of the way that schools teach and shape the youth of the state.

The Attorney General of Texas is the chief lawyer and legal officer for the state of Texas. According to the Texas Constitution, the attorney general defends the laws and the constitution of the state of Texas, represents the state in litigation, and approves public bond issues.This elected official carries a lot of power over the legal matters that concern the state of Texas and one should be cautious when placing their voting in for this position, just as they would for the governor of the state.

Always be sure to research the candidates that you plan on voting for, and also be knowledgeable on the different electable positions to know the future responsibilities of the candidate that you plan on voting for.