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Each year, thousands of votes are cast in the Port Arthur News Best Of contest as local residents weigh in on their favorite businesses, restaurants, services and places.

There is not a day you can go in a Port Arthur or Mid County business and not see a Best Of ribbon on a door, wall of a business or website. This year, we expect record turn-out as people again make their voices heard. Plus, we’ve expanded the voting process to make it easier for YOU.

We moved to a state-of-the-art online voting platform that is “best of breed” in online voting systems for Best Of contests. This allows for more secure voting and automatic tabulation of votes. The new-and-improved voting system is mobile-friendly and easier to use.

Nominations are complete, and the voting phase of Best of 2021 runs through July 31.

Choosing between the top three nominated businesses per sub-category will make the voting phase easier and faster. Winners will be contacted after the voting ends.

The winners of Best of 2021 will be announced to the public in September through a special section and will also be online on panews.com/contests.

Also updated this year is a redesigned logo, which reflects the unique character of our fine community. It also has a brighter color scheme that will help businesses that win stand out.