In a Wednesday press conference, the Travis County Democratic Party and Travis County elected officials called out “election denialism” within the Travis County Republican Party that they say is keeping the two party organizations from agreeing on rules for primary elections. The Austin Monitor previously reported on concerns that the two local party groups had […]
Travis County Democratic Party
Posted inElections
Republican push for hand counting leads to uncertainty about Travis County’s 2024 primaries
A divide between Travis County’s local political parties on hand counting and paper ballots is leading to uncertainty about how the county will administer the 2024 primaries. In a Tuesday letter to Travis County Clerk Dyana Limon-Mercado, Travis County Democratic Party Chair Katie Naranjo expressed the party’s concern about the Travis County Republican Party’s “questions and […]
Posted inElections
Parties seek election judges, workers for March
Even though March 2022 seems far away, Democrats and Republicans are gearing up for the March 1 primary elections. Part of that is appointing election judges and other polling place workers. Travis County Democratic Party Chair Katie Naranjo has been emailing Democrats to see if they want to sign up now. The Travis County Republican […]
Posted inBonds & Propositions
No on B aims to fight with Republicans
A new political action committee called Homes Not Handcuffs has announced its presence in Austin with an email declaring that “every part of Travis County’s big tent Democratic Party” is joining together to oppose Proposition B in the No on B campaign. Proposition B would prohibit camping in most areas of the city and allow […]
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 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 inLocal Politics
County judge selection up to precinct chairs
When Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt announced in March that she would resign from her job as the leader of the Commissioners Court in order to run for Senate District 14, it set in motion a series of events that will likely culminate in county Democratic precinct chairs electing the next Travis County judge. So far, […]
Posted inLocal Politics
Democrats call on Dukes to step down for failing to show up
Democratic House Rep. Dawnna Dukes of Austin was already in hot water at the start of the legislative session. She had walked back a promise to resign and, soon after, was indicted. But Travis County Democrats say she then failed to do a major part of her job: show up. According to Community Impact, she’s […]
Posted inReporters' Notebook
Reporter’s Notebook: Don’t knock it, or try it
Delay Red River… When the Austin Monitor published a sneak peek in April of the findings of a close-to-complete draft of Urban Land Institute’s examination of the precarious state of the Red River Cultural District, one of the key findings was that the entertainment district was in its “11th hour” and in danger of being […]
Posted inElections
Uber and Lyft proposition doesn’t fall neatly along party lines
Recently, local political action committee Ridesharing Works for Austin hired two Republican campaign veterans – Reed Galen and Travis Considine. Between them, they’ve worked on campaigns for John McCain, George W. Bush and Rick Perry. And in what feels like the same breath, the Travis County Democratic Party formally took a stance in opposition of […]