Kirk Watson
2023 - Present
2029
2
Kirk Watson is the Mayor of Austin in Texas. He assumed office on January 6, 2023. His current term ends on January 6, 2029.
Watson was elected mayor on December 13, 2022, defeating Celia Israel in a runoff 50.4%-49.6%. He was previously elected mayor in 1997 and left office in 2001 to run unsuccessfully for Texas attorney general. Baylor Magazine reported that during his first tenure as mayor, Watson "led efforts to revitalize downtown Austin, secure the city's long-term water supply, proactively improve air quality in Central Texas, and build a bypass to Interstate 35 through Austin."[1]
Watson was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, in 1958. He was raised near Fort Worth, Texas, and received a bachelor's degree in political science from Baylor University in 1980 and a J.D. from Baylor Law School in 1981.[1][2] After law school, Watson clerked for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.[1]Watson co-founded the law firm Watson Bishop London & Galow in 1997.[1]
In addition to his career in law, Watson served as a Democratic Texas state senator. Watson was elected to Texas State Senate District 14 in 2006 and served until 2020, when he became the founding dean of the University of Houston Hobby School of Public Affairs.[3] As a senator, he focused on public education, healthcare, and government transparency.[4]
Since taking office as mayor for a second time in 2023, Watson's priorities included affordability, transportation, public safety, and homelessness.[4] Watson has supported a city council initiative to build more housing units and an initiative to make child care facilities exempt from city property taxes.[5]
Biography
Kirk Watson was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, in 1958. He received a bachelor's degree in political science from Baylor University in 1980 and a J.D. from Baylor Law School in 1981.[1] After law school, Watson clerked for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.[1] Watson co-founded the law firm Watson Bishop London & Galow in 1997.[1] In 2005, he joined Hughes & Luce LLP (later part of K&L Gates), and in 2009, he joined Brown McCarroll LLP.[6][7] Watson became the founding dean of the University of Houston Hobby School of Public Affairs in 2020.[8] Watson previously served as mayor of Austin, Texas, from 1997 to 2001 and in the Texas Senate from 2007 to 2020.[1][3]
Elections
2024
See also: Mayoral election in Austin, Texas (2024)
General election
General election for Mayor of Austin
Incumbent Kirk Watson defeated Carmen Llanes Pulido, Kathie Tovo, Jeffery Bowen, and Doug Greco in the general election for Mayor of Austin on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Kirk Watson (Nonpartisan) | 50.0 | 166,890 |
 | Carmen Llanes Pulido (Nonpartisan)  | 20.4 | 68,042 | |
 | Kathie Tovo (Nonpartisan) | 16.7 | 55,715 | |
 | Jeffery Bowen (Nonpartisan) | 8.1 | 27,055 | |
 | Doug Greco (Nonpartisan) | 4.7 | 15,768 | |
| Total votes: 333,470 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Watson in this election.
2022
See also: Mayoral election in Austin, Texas (2022)
General runoff election
General runoff election for Mayor of Austin
Kirk Watson defeated Celia Israel in the general runoff election for Mayor of Austin on December 13, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Kirk Watson (Nonpartisan) | 50.4 | 57,565 |
 | Celia Israel (Nonpartisan) | 49.6 | 56,623 | |
| Total votes: 114,188 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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General election
General election for Mayor of Austin
The following candidates ran in the general election for Mayor of Austin on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Celia Israel (Nonpartisan) | 40.0 | 122,377 |
| ✔ | | Kirk Watson (Nonpartisan) | 34.9 | 106,883 |
 | Jennifer Virden (Nonpartisan) | 18.4 | 56,313 | |
 | Phil Campero Brual (Nonpartisan) | 2.4 | 7,340 | |
| Anthony Bradshaw (Nonpartisan) | 2.3 | 7,137 | ||
| Gary Spellman (Nonpartisan) | 1.9 | 5,815 | ||
| Total votes: 305,865 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Erica Nix (Nonpartisan)
Kirk Watson defeated Celia Israel in the December 13, 2022, nonpartisan general runoff election for mayor of Austin, Texas. Israel and Watson. Incumbent Stephen Adler did not run for re-election.
At the time of the election, Israel served in the Texas House of Representatives, representing District 50 as a Democrat. She assumed office in 2014. Israel said, "I have a reputation for having an open door and open mind, and I have the experience and tenacious leadership to help us find common ground at every opportunity."[9] Israel made housing affordability a central focus of her campaign. Israel said the city should use its unutilized public space to build more housing: "Austin could be doing more with its public space. It owns 6,000 tracts of land. That could be teacher housing, 911 operator housing, police housing."[10] Israel also campaigned on providing rental relief to renters, reducing parking requirements and increasing density, and making it easier for people to build accessory dwelling units on their property.[11] Israel's campaign has also focused on transportation and mobility, including pushing to "create bus lanes, and build protected bike lanes and sidewalks so everyone has a safe, affordable, and pollution-free option of moving around Austin."[12]
Watson served in the Texas State Senate, representing District 14 as a Democrat, from 2007 to 2020. He served as the mayor of Austin from 1997 to 2001. Watson ran his record as mayor, saying, "I have a proven record of success in getting big things done for Austin and we're in a point in time we're no longer becoming a big city — we're a big city and we need to do big things."[13] Watson's campaign focused on housing affordability. Watson proposed changing the city's development review process to make it faster to build more housing and temporarily halving development fees.[14] Watson's housing policy plan includes a plank to allow City Council members to propose district-specific housing policies: "What my plan does is it says ‘let’s ask the districts what they want to do in order to get us more housing,’ not to block off any housing."[15] Watson has also campaigned on expanding childcare options and improving transportation.[16]
Israel and Watson disagreed on how to spend a $250 million housing bond voters approved on November 8, 2022. Israel said the city should "partner with a nonprofit who’s going to work to take our unhoused off the streets first and put them in a dignified place."[15] Watson said, "So one of my priorities would be to work with the private industry, the private developers as they're developing their projects, bring in that public money, so we would be able to together be able to buy down those units."[15]
2018
- See also: Texas State Senate elections, 2018
General election
General election for Texas State Senate District 14
Incumbent Kirk Watson defeated George Hindman and Micah Verlander in the general election for Texas State Senate District 14 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Kirk Watson (D) | 71.9 | 276,052 |
 | George Hindman (R) | 25.2 | 96,834 | |
| Micah Verlander (L) | 2.8 | 10,889 | ||
| Total votes: 383,775 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Nik Sturm (Independent)
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Texas State Senate District 14
Incumbent Kirk Watson advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas State Senate District 14 on March 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Kirk Watson | 100.0 | 82,626 |
| Total votes: 82,626 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Texas State Senate District 14
George Hindman advanced from the Republican primary for Texas State Senate District 14 on March 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | George Hindman | 100.0 | 24,168 |
| Total votes: 24,168 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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2014
- See also: Texas State Senate elections, 2014
Elections for 15 of the 31 seats in the Texas State Senate took place in 2014. A primary election took place on March 4, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in these elections was December 9, 2013. Incumbent Kirk Watson was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Watson defeated James Strohm (L) in the general election. David Baron (L) withdrew prior to the Libertarian district convention.[17][18][19]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Kirk Watson Incumbent |
80% | 154,391 | |
| Libertarian | James Strohm | 20% | 38,648 | |
| Total Votes | 193,039 | |||
2012
- See also: Texas State Senate elections, 2012
Watson ran in the 2012 election for Texas State Senate, District 14. Watson ran unopposed in the May 29 primary election and defeated Ryan M. Dixon (L) in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[20]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Kirk Watson Incumbent |
80.3% | 212,527 | |
| Libertarian | Ryan Dixon | 19.7% | 52,187 | |
| Total Votes | 264,714 | |||
2010
- See also: Texas State Senate elections, 2010
Watson won re-election to the 14th District seat in 2010. He ran unopposed in the primary.
Watson defeated Republican candidate Mary Lou Serafine and Libertarian candidate Kent Phillips in the general election on November 6, 2012.[20]
| Texas State Senate, District 14 2010 General election results | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
| Kirk Watson (D)
|
115,949 | 60.72% | ||
| Mary Lou Serafine (R) | 68,100 | 35.66% | ||
| Kent Phillips (L) | 6,884 | 3.6% | ||
2006
On Nov. 7, 2006, Watson won election to the 14th District Seat in the Texas State Senate, defeating opponent Robert Howard (L).[20]
Watson raised $1,562,229 for his campaign while Howard raised $11,317.[21]
| Texas State Senate, District 14 (2006) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
| Kirk Watson (D)
|
127,223 | 80.31% | ||
| Robert Howard (L) | 31,180 | 19.68% | ||
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Kirk Watson did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
2022
Kirk Watson did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Notable endorsements
This section displays endorsements this individual made in elections within Ballotpedia's coverage scope. Know of one we missed? Click here to let us know.
State legislative tenure
Committee assignments
2019-2020
Watson was assigned to the following committees:
- Nominations Committee, Vice-Chair
- Finance Committee
- Senate Higher Education Committee
- Education Committee
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Texas committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Finance |
| • Health & Human Services |
| • Higher Education |
| • Nominations, Vice chair |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Watson served on the following committees:
| Texas committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Business & Commerce |
| • Finance |
| • Higher Education |
| • Nominations |
2013-2014
In the 2013-2014 legislative session, Watson served on the following committees:
| Texas committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Business & Commerce |
| • Economic Development |
| • Higher Education, Vice chair |
| • Nominations |
| • Transportation |
| • Joint Committee on Oversight of Higher Ed Governance, Excellence & Transparency |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Watson served on the following Texas Senate committees:
| Texas committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Transportation & Homeland Security, Vice chair |
| • Business & Commerce |
| • Economic Development |
| • Higher Education |
| • Nominations |
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Watson served on the following Texas Senate committees:
| Texas committee assignments, 2009 |
|---|
| • Transportation & Homeland Security |
| • Business & Commerce |
| • Economic Development |
| • Jurisprudence |
| • Nominations |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Texas scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2020
In 2020, the Texas State Legislature was not in session.
2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the Texas State Legislature was in its 86th legislative session from January 8 through May 27.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the Texas State Legislature did not hold a regular session. |
2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the Texas State Legislature was in its 85th legislative session from January 10 through May 29. A special session was held from July 18 to August 15.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the Texas State Legislature did not hold a regular session. |
2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the Texas State Legislature was in its 84th legislative session from January 13 through June 1.
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the Texas State Legislature did not hold a regular session. |
2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the Texas State Legislature was in its 83rd legislative session from January 8 through May 27. Thirty minutes after the regular session ended, Governor Rick Perry called legislators back for a special session starting that evening.[22] Two additional called sessions were held from July 1 through July 30 and July 30 through August 5.[23]
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2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
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In 2012, the Texas State Legislature did not hold a regular session. |
2011
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2011, click [show]. |
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In 2011, the Texas State Legislature was in its 82nd legislative session from January 11 through May 30. A special session was called for May 31 through June 29.[23]
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See also
2024 Elections
External links
|
Candidate Mayor of Austin |
Officeholder Mayor of Austin |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Baylor Magazine, "Pro Texana, Medal Of Service: Sen. Kirk Watson," Fall 2010
- ↑ Kirk Watson Texas Senator, "Meet Kirk," accessed October 23, 2024
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 KVUE, "State Sen. Kirk Watson headed to University of Houston," April 30, 2020
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Austintexas.gov, "Mayor Kirk Watson - Biography," accessed October 23, 2024
- ↑ Governing, "Austin's Mayor Oversees a Completely Changed City," accessed September 2 , 2025
- ↑ Austin Business Journal, "Watson moving to Hughes & Luce, plays down Senate rumor," August 3, 2005
- ↑ JDJournal, "Watson Joins Brown McCarroll," January 15, 2009
- ↑ KVUE, "State Sen. Kirk Watson headed to University of Houston," April 30, 2020
- ↑ Community Impact, "Election Q&A: Meet the candidates running for Austin mayor," October 18, 2022
- ↑ Axios, "Five questions with Austin mayoral candidate Celia Israel," October 12, 2022
- ↑ Austin Monitor, "Mayoral candidate Israel shares housing platform," June 23, 2022
- ↑ Celia Israel 2022 campaign website, "MOBILITY," accessed December 5, 2022
- ↑ Axios, "Five questions with Austin mayoral candidate Kirk Watson," October 17, 2022
- ↑ Kirk Watson 2022 campaign website, "Housing," accessed December 5, 2022
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 KXAN, "Watch Austin mayor debate: Celia Israel, Kirk Watson discuss affordability, transportation, city’s future," December 1, 2022
- ↑ KXAN, "‘Very consequential’: Meet the candidates for Austin mayor," October 24, 2022
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "1992 - Current ELECTION HISTORY," accessed December 2, 2014
- ↑ Green Party of Texas, "Greens Release Candidate List," accessed July 26, 2014
- ↑ The Libertarian Party of Texas, "2014 Texas Senate Candidates List," accessed July 26, 2014
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 Texas Secretary of State, "1992 - Current Election History," accessed February 17, 2014
- ↑ Follow the Money, "Candidate funds," accessed May 24, 2014
- ↑ kten.com, "Texas Lawmakers To Tackle Redistricting In Special Session," May 29, 2013
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 Legislative reference Library of Texas, "Texas Legislative Sessions and Years," accessed June 13, 2014
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Stephen Adler |
Mayor of Austin 2023-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
Texas State Senate District 14 2007-2020 |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
Mayor of Austin 1997-2001 |
Succeeded by - |
| |||||||||
