Siegel, Bledsoe headed for a runoff in District 7

In a crowded race to represent North Central District 7, none of the six contenders managed to snag 50 percent of the vote. As a result, Mike Siegel and Gary Bledsoe will face off in a runoff next month.

Siegel, who generated the most funding and endorsements during the general election, claimed about 40 percent of the vote.

“I’m feeling really thankful to the voters who really responded to my progressive message of climate action, building more housing, and criminal justice reform,” he told the Austin Monitor during his election night celebration at Lala’s Little Nugget.

Siegel said his challenge for the runoff was to reconnect with the voters he had already talked to.

“My pitch to voters is that I have both the organizing experience and the City Hall experience,” he added, citing his experience as a co-founder of Ground Game Texas and as an assistant city attorney. “In a variety of ways, I’ve brought people together for popular, progressive causes. But I’ve also been in the building (City Hall).

“I think voters responded to my background as someone who advocated for democratic causes … someone who’s challenged (Ken) Paxton and (Greg) Abbott,” Siegel told the Monitor. “People want someone who’s going to stand up for progressive values.”

Siegel’s opponent will be Bledsoe, a civil rights attorney and former president of the Texas NAACP, who snagged just over 19 percent of the vote. Bledsoe said he was feeling “ecstatic” about the results. “Even though the other (candidates) have had much greater funding and much greater time in (the race), we seem to be … very competitive. There’s real hope for our vision of … making sure our community is governed by good, commonsense policies instead of backdoor politics,” he told the Monitor during his election night party at the Hideout Pub.

Bledsoe elaborated on his perspective on the recent, contentious Home Options for Mobility and Equity (HOME) amendments: “I’m not against HOME. … I was for HOME plus. We need to have more density, but we need to do so with common sense.” His concerns about the recent amendments included the potential for unnecessary burdens on our infrastructure, the creation of additional heat islands, and a lack of guaranteed affordable housing. Bledsoe told the Monitor that, if elected, he will work to ensure that young people, working people and musicians can afford to stay in their homes.

Bledsoe added that he will be a “watchdog” on Council: “I’m the (candidate) that’s been the most vigilant about … the Open Meetings Act violations and the mistreatment of citizens when they go to speak before Council. … I’m one that will resist and push back and try to provide the community with a voice that it doesn’t have right now.”

The other candidates, Pierre Nguyễn, Adam Powell, Todd Shaw and Edwin Bautista, obtained 14.8 percent, 11.2 percent, 8.7 percent and 6.2 percent of the vote, respectively.

Outgoing Mayor Pro Tem Leslie Pool has represented District 7 since 2014. She is completing her final term on City Council. District 7 voters will choose between Bledsoe and Siegel in a runoff on Dec. 14.

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Posted In: Elections, District 7