--- description: Denton, Texas, passed high-profile ban on hydraulic fracturing title: Fracking Ban Activists Balance Gains With Losses image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt023a50dc5ce38749/698698e0d0b6f27de7304f8b/rtr3ev3n.jpg?branch=production ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Environment](/tag/environment/) ## Environment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Midterm Elections Pass Four New Anti-Fracking Bans  by [Denver Nicks](/author/denver-nicks/)  ## Denver Nicks Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Nov 5, 2014 8:37 PM CUT  by [Denver Nicks](/author/denver-nicks/)  ## Denver Nicks Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Nov 5, 2014 8:37 PM CUT A record number of proposed bans to the controversial oil and gas drilling technique known as fracking were included on local ballots countrywide Tuesday. Out of eight proposed bans, four passed, in Ohio, Texas and California. Perhaps the unlikeliest victory for anti-fracking activists was in Denton, Texas, a town north of Dallas situated in what one activist [called](http://www.forbes.com/sites/lorensteffy/2014/11/05/will-oil-industry-learn-from-texas-towns-fracking-ban/ "undefined") the “cradle” of the U.S. oil and gas boom. The ban, which forbids the process of setting off large explosions underground in oil and gas drilling operations, passed with nearly 59% of the vote. Denton is the first municipality in Texas to have passed a fracking ban–even despite heavy spending by the oil and gas industry to defeat the measure that the Denton _Record Chronicle_ [called](http://www.dentonrc.com/local-news/local-news-headlines/20141027-bans-foes-far-outspend-proponents.ece "undefined") it “the most expensive campaign in Denton’s history” by far. “People in Denton rallied together and did some amazing organizing to pass a ban,” said Mark Schlosberg. A legal challenge to the ban is all but assured, [reports](http://www.texastribune.org/2014/11/05/denton-bans-fracking-spurring-bigger-clashes/ "undefined") the Texas _Tribune._ Three of five similar bans passed in Colorado in recent years were overturned in local district court. Fracking bans were also passed in Mendocino and San Benito counties in California, and in Athens, Ohio, while voters in Santa Barbara, California, and in the Ohio towns of Kent, Gates Mills and Youngstown rejected proposed fracking bans. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3559160/fracking-activists-texas-ban/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3559160/fracking-activists-texas-ban/"},"headline":"Midterm Elections Pass Four New Anti-Fracking Bans","datePublished":"2014-11-05T20:37:00.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T11:15:08.837Z","description":"Denton, Texas, passed high-profile ban on hydraulic fracturing","url":"https://time.com/3559160/fracking-activists-texas-ban/","keywords":["Environment","Texas","Oil","fracking","Gas","drilling"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt023a50dc5ce38749/698698e0d0b6f27de7304f8b/rtr3ev3n.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Denver Nicks","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/denver-nicks/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt023a50dc5ce38749/698698e0d0b6f27de7304f8b/rtr3ev3n.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"An oil derrick is seen at a fracking site for extracting oil outside of Williston","caption":"An oil derrick is seen at a fracking site for extracting oil outside of Williston","creditText":"","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/environment/","name":"Environment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3559160/fracking-activists-texas-ban/","name":"Midterm Elections Pass Four New Anti-Fracking Bans"}}]}] ```