2022 Austin mayoral election
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The 2022 Austin mayoral election was held on November 8, 2022 to elect the next mayor of Austin, Texas. The election was nonpartisan; candidates' party affiliations did not appear on the ballot. Incumbent mayor Steve Adler was term-limited and could not run for re-election. In the general election, state representative Celia Israel and former mayor Kirk Watson took the first two spots, leading realtor Jennifer Virden and several other candidates. Because no candidate received more than 50% of the vote, the race proceeded to a runoff election between Israel and Watson on December 13, which Watson won with 886 votes—the narrowest margin in over two decades.[1]
Due to the passage of Proposition D in 2021, which scheduled mayoral elections in Austin to coincide with presidential elections, the winner of this election will serve a shortened two-year term.[2]
Background
Though the election is officially nonpartisan, the runoff candidates, Celia Israel and Kirk Watson, are both affiliated with the Democratic Party.[3] Jennifer Virden, who was third place, had a reputation of being conservative.[4]
Steven Pedigo, director of UT's LBJ Urban Lab, indicated that Watson’s support was centralized with longtime residences of Austin in areas like the Northwest and Israel’s support was with younger demographics in growing and gentrifying areas of South and East Austin.[5]
According to Axios, Watson may benefit by the absence of Beto O’Rourke, who draws out younger and more progressive voters, from appearing on the ballot. Furthermore, voters who supported more conservative Virden may be more inclined to opt for Watson in the runoff.[5]
Candidates
Declared
- Craig Blanchard, business owner (Party affiliation: Democratic)[6]
- Anthony Bradshaw, security guard[7]
- Phil Campero Brual, Legislative intern and University of Texas at Austin governmen student[8][9]
- Celia Israel, state representative from the 50th district (Party affiliation: Democratic)[10]
- Gary Spellman, business owner[11]
- Jennifer Virden, business owner and realtor[12]
- Kirk Watson, former president pro tempore of the Texas Senate from the 14th district and former mayor (Party affiliation: Democratic)[13]
Withdrew
Declined
- Greg Casar, city councilor (running for U.S. House)[16]
- Adam Loewy, attorney[17]
- Kathie Tovo, city councilor[18]
Endorsements
Celia Israel
- U.S. Representatives
- Joaquin Castro, U.S. Representative from TX-20 (2013-present)[19]
- State Legislators
- Vikki Goodwin, state representative[19][20]
- Donna Howard, state representative[19][20]
- Local Officials
- Delia Garza, Travis County Attorney[19][20]
- Dana Debeauvoir, former Travis County Clerk[19]
- José "Chito" Vela, Austin City Councillor[20]
- Organizations
- AURA: An Austin for Everyone[21]
- Circle C Democrats[22]
- EMILY's List[23]
- Jolt Action[24][25]
- Latino Victory Fund[19][20]
- LGBTQ Victory Fund[19][26][20]
- LPAC[19][27]
- Northeast Travis County Democrats[20][19]
- Stonewall Democrats of Austin[28]
- Texas College Democrats[29]
- Williamson County Democrats[30]
- University Democrats[28]
- Newspapers
- The Austin Chronicle[31]
- Austin-American Statesman[32]
- Hyde Parker Magazine[33]
Jennifer Virden
- Municipal officials
- Lee Leffingwell, former mayor of Austin (2009–2015)[17]
- Ron Mullen, former mayor of Austin (1983–1985)[17]
Declined to endorse
- Steve Adler, mayor of Austin (2015–present)[34]
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Celia Israel | 118,123 | 40.52 | |
| Nonpartisan | Kirk Watson | 101,960 | 34.97 | |
| Nonpartisan | Jennifer Virden | 52,502 | 18.01 | |
| Nonpartisan | Phil Campero Brual | 6,813 | 2.34 | |
| Nonpartisan | Anthony Bradshaw | 6,697 | 2.30 | |
| Nonpartisan | Gary Spellman | 5,450 | 1.87 | |
| Turnout | 291,545 | 100 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Kirk Watson | 57,346 | 50.39% | |
| Nonpartisan | Celia Israel | 56,460 | 49.61% | |
| Turnout | 113,806 | 100 | ||
References
- ^ Fechter, Joshua (December 13, 2022). "Austin voters elect Kirk Watson, who served as mayor two decades ago, to lead the city again". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
- ^ Miznazi, Ashley (May 1, 2021). "Props D and E pass, changing how Austin elections work". KXAN Austin. Retrieved November 21, 2021.
- ^ Dey, Joshua Fechter and Sneha (November 9, 2022). "Austin mayor's race heading to a runoff, Dallas county judge wins reelection". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
- ^ "Virden positions herself as the 'common-sense' candidate for mayor". Austin Monitor. August 24, 2022.
- ^ a b Price, Asher (November 10, 2022). "Austin mayor's race results show a cleaved Austin". Axios. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
- ^ https://www.austinmonitor.com/stories/whispers/one-added-to-mayoral-lineup-as-littlefield-tweets-candidate-facts/
- ^ Saldaña, Sean (October 25, 2022). "Anthony Bradshaw wants 'to see an Austin, Texas, that is successful'". Austin Monitor. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
- ^ "Campaign Treasurer Appointment Forms - Master List | AustinTexas.gov". www.austintexas.gov. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
- ^ "Austin mayoral candidate unveils 6-part housing affordability plan". KXAN Austin. June 2, 2022. Retrieved June 14, 2022.
- ^ Barragán, James (January 11, 2022). "State Rep. Celia Israel announces run for Austin mayor". The Texas Tribune. Archived from the original on January 12, 2022. Retrieved January 15, 2022.
- ^ Saldaña, Sean (September 29, 2022). "Gary Spellman looks to disrupt Austin politics". Austin Monitor. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
- ^ Eubank, Britny (November 9, 2021). "Jennifer Virden is running for mayor of Austin in 2022". kvue.com.
- ^ "Austin American-Statesman".
- ^ Mekelburg, Madlin (September 22, 2021). "State Rep. Celia Israel launches exploratory committee for Austin mayor in 2022". Austin American-Statesman.
- ^ "Nix drops out of mayoral race, issues endorsement for Israel". Austin Monitor. September 1, 2022. Retrieved September 5, 2022.
- ^ Lindell, Chuck (November 4, 2021). "Greg Casar to leave Austin City Council, run for Congress". Austin American-Statesman. Gannett. Archived from the original on November 5, 2021.
- ^ a b c Freer, Emma (June 22, 2021). "Conservative District 10 challenger Jennifer Virden announces run for Austin mayor". Austonia.
- ^ Guzmán, Andrea (November 8, 2021). "Conservative Jennifer Virden officially announces run for Austin Mayor". Austonia.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Celia Israel seeks to be a progressive voice for Austin". Austin Monitor. August 12, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Israel and Watson vie for endorsements of influential Democrat groups". Austin Monitor. September 16, 2022.
- ^ https://aura-atx.org/blog/
- ^ "Unions Bet on Mayoral Candidate Kirk Watson". The Austin Chronicle. September 9, 2022.
- ^ https://www.emilyslist.org/pages/entry/state-and-local-candidates
- ^ https://jolttx.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Austin-Candidate-Endorsements-Press-Release-09.26.22-1.pdf
- ^ https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2022-09-30/election-ticker-southwest-council-races-illuminate-dual-political-divides/
- ^ "LGBTQ Victory Fund Endorses 80 More LGBTQ Candidates, Including Robert Zimmerman for U.S. Congress". www.victoryfund.org. LGBTQ Victory Fund. Retrieved February 25, 2022.
- ^ "Endorsed Candidates". LPAC.
- ^ a b "Election Ticker: They Ban, We Plan Celia Israel and Kirk Watson answer urbanists, Israel lays out repro rights plan, and more". The Austin Chronicle. September 23, 2022.
- ^ "Texas College DemocratS Endorse Celia Israel for Mayor".
- ^ https://www.celiaforaustin.com/.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ "Austin Chronicle Endorses Celia Israel for Mayor".
- ^ "Endorsement: Israel offers best vision to lead as Austin mayor". Austin-American Statesman. October 23, 2022. Retrieved November 30, 2022.
- ^ https://www.hydeparkermagazine.com/articles/2022-hyde-parker-magazine-endorses-celia-israel-for-mayor
- ^ Autullo, Ryan (November 7, 2022). "Change of plan: Steve Adler not endorsing anybody in Austin mayoral race". Austin-American Statesman. Retrieved November 30, 2022.
- ^ https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/TX/Travis/115627/web.307039/#/detail/0037. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
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