While most Austinites were focused on Covid-19, whether or not to send their children to school and how to pay the rent, a surprising number of people – 20 to be exact – signed up to have their names on the November ballot for a seat on City Council. The filing deadline was 5 p.m. […]
Elections
Posted inElections
Local attorney Andy Brown will be Democratic nominee for county judge
Local attorney and activist Andy Brown will be the Democratic nominee for Travis County judge in the November election. Brown won 55.88 percent of the vote Sunday night in an election by party precinct chairs. The prior county judge, Sarah Eckhardt, resigned to run for a Texas Senate seat vacated by state Sen. Kirk Watson […]
Posted inTransportation
Council orders transit election, $460M active transportation bond for November ballot
City Council is giving voters an opportunity to transform the city’s mobility infrastructure on Nov. 3 with a tax rate election for a $7.1 billion investment in a mass transit rail system, and a $460 million active mobility bond. Voters will decide whether to approve the $0.5335 per $100 valuation property tax rate to fund […]
Posted inLocal Politics
Precinct chairs ready to elect new county judge
With former Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt taking her seat in the Texas Senate, and no name on the November ballot for Travis County judge, the duty of selecting that nominee falls on the 136 Democratic precinct chairs who normally work on efforts such as getting out the vote. Republicans could also select a nominee […]
Posted inBonds & Propositions
Austin says group doesn’t have signatures to put homelessness ordinances on the ballot in November
Austin’s city clerk says a group seeking to reinstate the city’s bans on sitting, camping or lying down in public doesn’t have the requisite 20,000 signatures to force a referendum on Election Day. Save Austin Now, led by Travis County GOP Chair Matt Mackowiak, submitted its petition with 24,201 signatures late last month. After a […]
Posted inBonds & Propositions
Staff memo spells out options, tight time frame for Council’s push for active transit bond
City staff members have expressed concern to City Council over direction to put together a bond proposal for the November election that would look to generate $750 million to fund sidewalks, trails and other “active transportation” improvements. Last week Council approved on consent a resolution directing the city manager to give Council a plan to […]
Posted inElections
Rodriguez concedes, calls for unity, Eckhardt headed to Texas Senate
Eddie Rodriguez announced Monday that he was opting out of an uphill battle for the Senate District 14 seat against former Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt. Instead, Rodriguez said he would focus his efforts “on winning a Democratic majority and promoting an aggressive, progressive agenda in the Texas House.” Rodriguez, who has served in the […]
Posted inBonds & Propositions
Council members consider merits of separate safe mobility bond
Responding to a concerted push from local mobility advocates, City Council has opened up the discussion about placing active mobility funds on the November ballot alongside the $7 billion-$10 billion public transit system Project Connect. Five weeks ago, a coalition of 36 organizations called Austin Outside launched a petition calling for a $750 million bond […]
Posted inBonds & Propositions
Group says it has enough signatures to put Austin’s homelessness ordinances on the November ballot
A GOP-backed group says it’s collected enough signatures to put a reversal of the city’s homeless ordinances on the ballot in November. Save Austin Now, a coalition led by longtime strategist and Travis County GOP Chair Matt Mackowiak, announced Monday it has turned in 24,087 signatures for its petition to reinstate bans on camping, panhandling […]
Posted inBonds & Propositions
PAC readies to oppose rail bond
The political action committee Our Mobility Our Future, whose backers plan to oppose a proposition on the November ballot to fund the Project Connect transit system, reported this week that they had collected more than $98,000 during the reporting period that started in January. The PAC also reports $75,000 in pledged contributions. City Council has […]
Posted inElections
City Council candidates file campaign finance reports
Though the results of Tuesday’s election are still being tallied, Wednesday marked the day that campaign finance reports for City Council elections were due. In addition to casting their votes for president of the United States this year, Austin residents will decide the new Council representatives in districts 2, 4, 6, 7 and 10. Though […]
Posted inElections
Updated: Runoff likely in Senate District 14 race
With six candidates vying to take the place of Senate District 14’s Kirk Watson, it seemed reasonable to assume there would be a runoff, most likely between two popular Democrats: former Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt and state Rep. Eddie Rodriguez. On Wednesday morning Eckhardt, the daughter of the late U.S. Rep. Bob Eckhardt, had […]