Bond elections, 1997-2023

Key facts

• Bond elections since 1997: 8 election days, 14 ballot items¹
• Biggest request: $727.2 million in 2021 (failed by 215 votes)¹
• Most recent: May 2023, three items, $762.8 million in all, all passed¹²
• Still unsold from 2023: about $200.7 million³

In short

A bond election asks voters if the district may borrow. Leander has held 8 bond election days since 1997, with 14 ballot items.¹ Voters turned down $727.2 million in 2021 by 215 votes.¹ In 2023 they approved three items.¹²

Why it matters to your tax bill: each approved bond is repaid by the debt tax over many years.

Related: 2017 bond · 2023 bond · next bond · debt

A bond election asks voters if the district may borrow. See bond election.

Date	Item	What for	Amount	Result
Jan. 1997	1	School buildings	$79.0M	Passed, 59.9%
Feb. 2000	1	School buildings	$177.2M	Passed, 72.2%
Feb. 2003	1	School buildings	$189.9M	Passed, 57.2%
May 2006	1	School buildings	$286.1M	Passed, 59.5%
May 2006	2	Stadium	$6.9M	Failed (55.7% against)
May 2006	3	Pool	$7.0M	Failed (57.0% against)
Nov. 2007	1	School buildings	$559.0M	Passed, 55.7%
Nov. 2017	1	Buildings and technology	$454.4M	Passed, 65.9%
Nov. 2021	A	Buildings and buses	$727.2M	Failed, 9,871 to 10,086
Nov. 2021	B	Technology	$33.3M	Passed, 10,383 to 9,578
Nov. 2021	C	Performing arts	$11.7M	Failed
May 2023	A	Buildings and buses	$698.3M	Passed, 62.0%
May 2023	B	Technology	$50.8M	Passed, 64.4%
May 2023	C	Performing arts	$13.7M	Passed, 60.5%

Source: note ¹. 2021 vote counts are the district’s unofficial totals.

Think of a family asking the household before each mortgage. Most times the answer was yes.

What the old votes still cost

Bonds approved from 2000 to 2007 still drive about two-thirds of the district’s yearly interest.⁴ See Growing loans.

The district’s side

Each new school building bond needs voters’ approval first under state law.⁵ Refinancing bonds that replace old ones do not need a new vote.⁵

Questions to ask

• Where does the county post official results for past school bond elections?
• Where can the public find turnout records for each election?

Changes to this page

• Nov. 2, 2026: Added questions to ask.
• Nov. 2, 2026: We replaced an unsourced statement with what state law requires.

What you can do or watch next

• Watch for any future bond election, which the board must call in a public vote.

What we still don’t know

• Turnout as a share of registered voters for each election. We have not added it yet.

Footnotes

1. Leander ISD, bond election history, financial transparency page. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷

2. Board packet, Dec. 11, 2025, page 357: 2023 authorization totals $762,820,000. Packet page 357. ↩ ↩²

3. Leander ISD, Official Statement, Series 2026A, “Authorized but Unissued Bonds”: $200,713,430 of 2023 authority remains. On EMMA. ↩

4. Our math from the pricing tables in the district’s official statements: about 65% of 2025-26 interest is on bonds approved from 2000 to 2007, or the loans that refinanced them. ↩

5. Texas Education Code §45.003 (voter approval for school building bonds); Texas Government Code ch. 1207 (refunding bonds). https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/ ↩ ↩²