Read Part II of the series here. District 5 will choose a new City Council member this November. Ann Kitchen was elected to a first term in 2015 and ran a second time unopposed in 2019. The environmentalist and attorney was known for her pragmatic approach and tireless commitment to public engagement. Term limits prohibit […]
November 2022 elections
Posted inElections
Submit your questions and join us for forums with the candidates running for Austin City Council
Ahead of early voting for this November’s elections, KUT and the Austin Monitor will host forums with the candidates running for five seats on City Council. If you’re not sure, you can find out if you live in a Council district that’s up for grabs this year here. Tune in to find out what the candidates […]
Posted inElections
Gary Spellman looks to disrupt Austin politics
With hair to his shoulders, an aggressive distaste for politics and officially $0 raised, Gary Spellman is hardly what one imagines when envisioning a typical candidate for elected office – something he embraces wholeheartedly. Recounting an interaction, he says, “I told them I don’t want to be a politician. And they all laughed and go, […]
Posted inElections
Candidates for District 1 City Council seat chat with the ‘Monitor’
Four years ago, Natasha Harper-Madison won a runoff election to become the second-ever representative of City Council District 1. That year, the entrepreneur and mother of four bucked conventional wisdom by winning at the expense of better financed candidates. This cycle, the dynamic is completely different. Incumbent Harper-Madison has raised $113,973, while only one of […]
Posted inElections
November is coming, and endorsements for mayor are rolling in
’Tis the season for endorsements in races for Austin mayor and City Council seats for the Nov. 8 election. So far, all of the major labor organizations that are endorsing have endorsed Sen. Kirk Watson, a former Austin mayor. Groups backing Watson include the AFL-CIO Central Labor Council and AFSCME Local 1624, Austin Firefighters and […]
Posted inElections
Kirk Watson, a ‘fixture’ of Central Texas, wants to be mayor again
The way Kirk Watson tells it, his career in public office started with bad news. After working behind the scenes in Texas Democratic politics and in the state bureaucracy for a few years, he was diagnosed with testicular cancer in his mid-30s. A few years later, after a successful treatment, returning to work, another cancer scare, […]
Posted inElections
Nix drops out of mayoral race, issues endorsement for Israel
Performance artist, fitness instructor and body positivity activist Erica Nix formally announced Wednesday that she would drop out of the mayoral race and endorse former state Rep. Celia Israel. Nix launched her campaign late this summer with a platform centered on saving creative spaces. “I originally launched my campaign for mayor of Austin because I […]
Posted inElections
Virden positions herself as the ‘common-sense’ candidate for mayor
Jennifer Virden is about as much of an Austinite as someone can be. Born and raised in Northwest Hills, she’s eager to tell potential constituents how she went to Doss Elementary, that she’s an Anderson Trojan, and that she holds a degree in finance from the University of Texas at Austin. She’s spent her entire […]
Posted inElections
District 9 Council candidates chat with the ‘Monitor’: Part II
Read Part I of the series here. Linda Guerrero brings to the table an institutional knowledge of parks and environmental issues, along with expertise on affordability and transportation more broadly. In addition to being an AISD teacher for nearly three decades, she’s also spent time on the Environmental Commission and the Parks and Recreation Board, two […]
Posted inLocal Politics
District 9 City Council candidates chat with the ‘Monitor’: Part I
Read Part II of the series here. With Council Member Kathie Tovo term-limited and six candidates who have raised more than $25,000 so far, District 9 is thought to be one of the more competitive races this local election season. One consequence of that competition: It can be difficult for voters to differentiate the candidates, […]
Posted inAISD
‘I’m pretty speechless’: Austin ISD school board unanimously approves equity-focused bond
The Austin ISD Board of Trustees voted unanimously on Thursday to put a $2.44 billion bond on the November ballot. It is the largest bond package in AISD history, but district officials and school board members say what makes the bond significant is its investment in historically underserved schools and communities. “I’ve been in Austin […]
Posted inLocal Politics
Celia Israel seeks to be a progressive voice for Austin
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 […]