Election results: San Antonio City Council may have its first openly gay member; District 1 incumbent in trouble – San Antonio Express-News

In the fight to represent the city’s urban core, challenger Mario Bravo was slightly ahead of third-term District 1 Councilman Roberto Treviño with a 3-point lead in early vote returns.

Bravo, an environmental activist and project manager for the Environmental Defense Fund, grabbed 51.7 percent of the early vote while Treviño had 48.4 percent.

Within the past two years, Treviño has positioned himself as somewhat of a progressive insurgent on the council. He’s often bucked Mayor Ron Nirenberg on big policy issues during the pandemic.

But some of Treviño’s stances have alienated neighborhood groups. After the councilman converted his field office into a place where the homeless can seek help, nearby residents in the Dellview neighborhood complained Treviño was making the area less safe.

Bravo has been able to capitalize on that sentiment to get into a runoff with Treviño, seeking a fourth and final term, and run up the score in Dellview and other parts of the district.

District 2

In a contentious race on the East Side, District 2 Councilwoman Jada Andrews-Sullivan, 45, was losing by a wide margin to Jalen McKee-Rodriguez, a 26-year-old math teacher at James Madison High School and the councilwoman’s former communications director.

In early voting results, McKee-Rodriguez held a large lead with 62 percent of the vote, while Andrews-Sullivan had 38 percent of the vote.

If his lead holds, McKee-Rodriguez will be the seventh council representative the East Side district has seen since 2014.

“We understand that we’re going into this with a lot of work to do and we have a lot to prove,” McKee-Rodriguez said Saturday night. “I’m just so grateful that a district that is told that stability matters more than quality leadership has decided to place their trust in me and take that gamble.

“I do not take that lightly at all,” he added.

Shortly after the early vote results came in, Andrews-Sullivan said in a statement: “We did the best for our community and we’re thankful for the opportunity.”

Andrews-Sullivan was first elected in 2019. She was seeking a second term in office.

She and McKee-Rodriguez ended up in a runoff after fighting off 10 other candidates in the May election. McKee-Rodriguez received the most votes at 26 percent, while Andrews-Sullivan had 18 percent of the vote.

If elected, McKee-Rodriguez will be the first openly gay man elected in San Antonio, and the first openly gay Black man elected in the state of Texas, according to LGBTQ Victory Fund.

He said his first priority will be to dissect the proposed budget and “make sure District 2 gets their fair share.”

He also wants to fight for infrastructure improvements such as sidewalks, drainage and streetlights, as well as a “fair and just police union contract to make sure that accountability is front and center.”

More for you

District 9

In the early voting, two-term incumbent John Courage, a progressive Democrat, took a sizeable lead over anti-gay, anti-abortion Republican challenger Patrick Von Dohlen in the race for District 9.

Courage had 57 percent of the vote, with more than three times as many mail ballots as Von Dohlen.

Von Dohlen, who lost to Courage in 2017 and 2019, relentlessly labeled Courage a Marxist during the campaign, pointing to Courage’s support of Black groups demanding police reform and the redistribution of some city funding from wealthy districts to poorer ones.

“Courage will win,” said his chief of staff, Derek Roberts, upon seeing the early vote totals. “It’s a clear mandate that District 9 voters rejected Patrick Von Dohlen’s message of hate.”

District 3

On the Southeast Side, Phyllis Viagran trounced former state Rep. Tomas Uresti on Saturday for the District 3 seat vacated by Viagran’s younger sister.

The candidates, members of prominent families in the district, ran what was largely a clean, civil runoff to replace Rebecca Viagran, who reached the four-term maximum on City Council.

Uresti was unable to overcome Phyllis Viagran’s early commanding lead as the votes were counted. Throughout the night, Viagran had more than 60 percent of the vote.

“We worked really hard to get the vote out,” Phyllis Viagran said by phone from a watch party at Tandem.

Viagran, 48, was a civilian for seven years in the San Antonio Police Department’s domestic violence unit working with victims of family violence. She had also worked at Visit San Antonio, a public-private nonprofit that promotes the city to tourists and convention planners. She then went on to work at Senior Planet, which teaches elders how to use technology, and sat on the board of the charitable arm of the Brooks Development Authority.

This is her first elected position, and though she said she shares the same work ethic with her sister, she aims to bring a new approach.

“I think the difference I have is a fresh perspective,” she said. “I have been more in direct services with the community. I want more of their input in the process, especially with federal funds. It’s a completely different time from when Rebecca got elected eight years ago. Now we’re in an economic recovery from the pandemic.”

Uresti is the brother of Bexar County Tax Assessor-Collector Albert Uresti and former state Sen. Carlos Uresti, who is serving 12 years in federal prison for fraud, money laundering and public corruption.

District 5

Progressive reform candidate Teri Castillo soundly defeated retired city employee Rudy Lopez in the race to succeed Councilwoman Shirley Gonzales in District 5 on the city’s West Side.

Castillo had 58 percent of the vote, compared with 42 percent for Lopez, who received an endorsement from Gonzales.

The hard-fought runoff centered on affordable housing, historic preservation and ideas for stimulating economic and educational opportunities in one of San Antonio’s poorest council districts.

Already a lively race with Castillo’s criticisms of Gonzales framing her as the more anti-establishment candidate in the runoff, the contest grew heated in recent weeks. Lopez’s campaign put out a mailer last month stating Castillo “advocates for Socialist and Marxist ideals.” Castillo dismissed the flyer as an attempt by Lopez to sidestep real issues in the race.

Then, in a high-profile case involving the potential demolition of the 90-year-old Whitt Building in Cattleman Square Historic District, Castillo joined demonstrators, saying the city’s process for weighing concerns about the building’s structural integrity against efforts to preserve its historic architecture had been circumvented in the waning days of Gonzales’ last term. The city’s Historic and Design Review Commission decided in an emergency meeting Wednesday to let the owner remove the building’s damaged roof, but preserve the building’s concrete frame and facade.

Castillo, a 29-year-old educator who advocated for public input on city budget decisions, led the field of 11 candidates in the May 1 election with 30.7 percent of the ballots cast but didn’t have enough to escape a runoff. Lopez had 14.7 percent.

She said late Saturday that the outcome of the runoff was a sign that District 5 residents want a city “that works for all of us.”

“Folks are tired,” she said, referring to the feedback she heard from residents while block walking. “They’re ready for bold change, to meet the material needs of the established communities in District 5.”

Castillo said one of her immediate priorities will be neighborhood stabilization and helping homeowners rehabilitate their homes to prevent demolition.

Her endorsements included County Commissioner Justin Rodriguez, Councilwoman Ana Sandoval, former Mayor Julián Castro and former Councilwoman María Berriozábal.

This is a developing report. Check back with ExpressNews.com for updates.