District 9 Council Member Kathie Tovo’s re-election campaign filed an ethics complaint Monday against the Center for Austin’s Future Political Action Committee, a group supporting Danielle Skidmore, Tovo’s most significant opponent. The complaint alleges that the committee, which calls itself CAFPAC, violated a section of city code requiring such committees to file their treasurer designation […]
Elections
Posted inElections
District 1 runoff: Mariana Salazar and Natasha Harper-Madison
With less than a percentage point separating them, Natasha Harper-Madison and Mariana Salazar will advance to a December runoff election for East Austin’s District 1 seat. In the end, Salazar had 5,673 votes (or 26.01 percent), with Harper-Madison behind at 5,469 (25.07 percent). “I’m feeling grateful and empowered,” said Salazar at her election watch party. […]
Posted inElections
Tovo easily wins third term
Kathie Tovo will serve her third term on the Austin City Council after winning a relatively easy victory over three opponents on Tuesday, finishing with almost 53 percent of the vote. Her closest challenger, Danielle Skidmore, garnered less than 32 percent of the vote, with two other candidates each winning less than 10 percent of […]
Posted inElections
Tight D8 race headed to runoff to fill Troxclair’s seat
The City Council seat for Southwest Austin is headed for another runoff to determine new representation for District 8, with incomplete results Wednesday morning pointing to newcomers Paige Ellis, who won 30.5 percent of the vote, and Frank Ward. who won 24.7 percent, set for a Dec. 11 race. Ellis and Ward won the top […]
Posted inElections
Another brother-sister runoff in East Austin’s District 3
Council Member Pio Renteria finished way ahead of multiple opponents in his bid for re-election in East Austin’s District 3. Renteria won 47.71 percent of the vote, while his sister, Susana Almanza, came in a distant second place, with 21.32 percent. “I think we did pretty good,” Renteria said at his election party Tuesday night. […]
Posted inElections
Adler cruises to second term as Austin mayor
In a landslide victory, Steve Adler won his re-election as mayor of Austin on Tuesday and will serve another four years in office. With voters coming out in record numbers in Travis County, Adler earned 61 percent of the vote, overpowering his biggest challenger, former Council Member Laura Morrison, along with five other candidates. Voters […]
Posted inBonds & Propositions
2018 election results: Austin bonds and propositions
Austin voters gave the OK to seven bond propositions totaling more than $925 million this election, but things aren’t looking good for two propositions fueled by citizen petitions – Propositions J and K – that could fail. Proposition A Results: After early voting numbers and a third of election day votes counted, 73 percent of […]
Posted inElections
Early voting results are in
In the mayor’s race, as expected, Mayor Steve Adler and former Council Member Laura Morrison have broken away from the pack. Adler currently has 61.11 percent of the vote and Morrison trails with 19.13 percent. Gus Pena has 10 percent, Todd Phelps 6.18 percent, Alexander Strenger 0.86 percent, Alan Pease 0.61 percent and Travis Duncan […]
Posted inLocal Politics
IndyAustin suspends paid petition drive against stadium deal
An activist group looking to prevent the city from making deals to build for-profit entertainment venues on city land has pulled back some of its resources for a petition drive. IndyAustin began collecting signatures in September with the goal of putting a ballot measure before voters next spring that would have required voter approval before […]
Posted inElections
City ethics rule may be unconstitutional
Mayor Steve Adler’s campaign manager filed an ethics complaint Tuesday against Megaphone GPAC, a general purpose political action committee opposing the mayor’s re-election. But it seems likely that the complaint will be dismissed, according to attorneys familiar with election law. Adler’s campaign manager, Jim Wick, noted that the committee’s treasurer, Luke McAlpin, filed Megaphone’s appointment […]
Posted inLocal Politics
PAC takes heat after using racist symbol Pepe the Frog in anti-Adler ad
One of Austin’s more prolific political action committees has apologized after releasing a video ad featuring Pepe the Frog, a cartoon frog used by anti-Semitic and alt-right groups. IndyAustin has collected thousands of dollars for several political goals, including opposing Mayor Steve Adler’s re-election and getting Proposition J on the ballot. An ad it released […]
Posted inElections
Complaints filed against District 1 candidates
Complaints filed with the Texas Ethics Commission charge City Council District 1 candidates Natasha Harper-Madison and Vincent Harding with filing erroneous campaign finance reports in violation of the Texas Election Code. Both campaigns denied any violations when contacted Monday, but the campaigns acknowledged receiving copies of the complaints. The commission is prohibited from releasing copies […]