Celia Israel announced her run for mayor early, on January 11, almost a full 10 months before election day. She said her motivation to run was her desire to tackle the biggest issues facing Austin today: affordability and transportation. Israel is no newcomer to politics. First elected to Texas House District 50 in 2014, she’s […]
Celia Israel
Longtime activist Celia Israel now serves in the Texas House of Representatives, representing the 50th district, as a Democrat.
Posted inLocal Politics
Celia Israel announces run for Austin mayor
State Rep. Celia Israel has made it official: On a chilly Tuesday morning at Parque Zaragoza in East Austin, Israel announced that she would be running for mayor of Austin. She was joined by supporters Rubén Cantú, Ashley Cheng, Nelson Linder, Sofia Reyes and state Rep. Donna Howard. In her speech, Israel pledged to “use […]
Posted inElections
Celia Israel opts to exit state seat, explore mayoral run
State Rep. Celia Israel has moved closer to entering the city’s 2022 mayor’s race, forming an exploratory committee for that campaign and opting not to run for reelection for the seat she has held since 2015. Israel announced her move Wednesday, making her the most high-profile name circling the office that Mayor Steve Adler will […]
Posted inTransportation
Capital Metro could get permission to bypass voter approval of MetroRail extension
State Rep. Celia Israel and state Sen. Kirk Watson have filed legislation at the Capitol that would make it much easier for the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority to expand its commuter rail service. On Friday, Israel filed House Bill 1726, which would allow the agency to build the proposed Green Line addition to MetroRail without […]
Posted inRoads
Discount program aims to detour truckers around Austin
The Texas Transportation Commission voted on Thursday to give cross-state truckers extra incentive to avoid Austin’s notoriously congested stretch of Interstate 35. With only one dissenting voice, the five-person commission – a board of gubernatorial appointees that oversees the Texas Department of Transportation – gave the green light to a temporary discount program to lure […]
Posted inElections, Uncategorized
Celia Israel runs for District 50 with a long history of public service
Celia Israel’s civic service resume reads a mile long. The long-time Travis County Democrat is probably most recognized for the work she did on former Gov. Ann Richards’ administration. But that was only one of many destinations along Israel’s political journey. Now Israel is racing toward the District 50 State Representative seat Mark […]