Help us improve in just 2 minutes—share your thoughts in our reader survey.
Municipal elections in Austin, Texas (2016)
2018 →
← 2014
|
| 2016 Austin elections |
|---|
 |
| Election dates |
| Filing deadline: August 22, 2016 |
| General election: November 8, 2016 Runoff election: December 13, 2016 |
| Election stats |
| Offices up: City council |
| Total seats up: 5 |
| Other municipal elections |
| U.S. municipal elections, 2016 |
In 2012, Austin voters approved a proposal to switch from at-large elections for city council to by-district elections.[1] Because city council members in Austin serve staggered four-year terms, the first members elected under the new system in 2014 were divided into two groups by lot. The members of one group served four-year terms, while the members of the other served an initial two-year term and ran for re-election to a full four-year term in 2016.[2][3]
Elections
General election
The election for District 10 advanced to a runoff election on December 13, 2016, because no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote in the general election. Alison Alter defeated Sheri P. Gallo in the runoff. Advancement to a runoff election is indicated with the following symbol: 
District 2
- ☐ Wesley Faulkner
- ☑ Delia Garza (i)
- ☐ Casey Ramos
District 4
District 6
District 7
- ☐ Natalie Gauldin
- ☑ Leslie Pool (i)
District 10
Ballot measures
- See also: Travis County, Texas ballot measures
November 8, 2016
| A yes vote was a vote in favor of the city issuing $720 million in bonds for projects to improve transportation and mobility. |
| A no vote was a vote against the city issuing $720 million in bonds for projects to improve transportation and mobility. |
Issues
Transportation bond
Arguing that Austin needed to make a significant investment in its infrastructure, Mayor Stephen Adler proposed a $720 million "Go Big" transportation bond in January 2016.[4] The specifics of the proposal changed as the project developed, and the bond language left flexibility over how the funds would be spent, which proponents said was necessary to adapt to evolving infrastructure needs."[5] However, the core of the proposal was conversion of some of Austin's major thoroughfares into "Smart Corridors," with remotely-timed traffic lights, dedicated turning lanes, bus pullouts, safe crosswalks, and other features designed to decrease congestion and increase the range of transportation options.[5][6]
The city council voted on August 18, 2016, to send the bond measure to the November ballot, but the measure—and the process by which it was developed—faced criticism from council members.[7] District 1 Councilwoman Ora Houston objected to a deliberation process she considered rushed, insular, and opaque. "I ran for office... to stop the top-down manner decisions made by the at large council and I am dismayed that a $720 million bond which will be on the November ballot is the product of the way things have always been done," she said. "We don't have any idea what the tax increase will be on the people in the city who are elderly, low-income. We just don't have any idea at this point."[8]
District 2 Councilwoman Garza agreed with Houston, adding, "The other big concern is no direct improvements to our public transit. I think we have to move to getting people out of their cars because roads -- building roads is unsustainable, and we've seen it at the state level and we'll see it here too."[8]
District 6 Councilman Zimmerman disagreed with the decision to remove ballot language specifying the bond's tax impact. The city legal department has "done a horrific, horrific job of representing the law and our options on this ballot language," he said. "I will never vote for unlimited taxation, and that is exactly what this bond proposal does."[8] Zimmerman also thought the bond should have been divided into multiple measures. He noted, "The number 1 comment I've received from constituents, why are you making us vote on this huge amount of money? Why isn't there some way you could break that into smaller pieces to give us choices?"[8]
Those concerns prompted four members of the city council to withdraw support for the measure. Houston voted against it in the final vote on August 18, 2016, and Garza, Troxclair, and Zimmerman abstained from the vote. All four members had backed the bond in an initial vote on August 11, 2016.[9]
The Austin Monitor surveyed the 2016 city council candidates' positions on the transportation bond. The candidates in District 2 all opposed the bond, and the District 7 candidates both supported it. Opinions in the other districts were split. All of the 2016 candidates' positions are summarized in the table below.
| Austin City Council candidates' positions on the $720 million transportation bond | ||
|---|---|---|
| District | Supported | Opposed |
| District 2[10] | Wesley Faulkner Delia Garza* (i) Casey Ramos | |
| District 4[11] | Gregorio Casar (i) | Gonzalo Camacho Louis Herrin III |
| District 6[12] | James Flannigan | Donald Zimmerman* (i) |
| District 7[13] | Leslie Pool (i) Natalie Gauldin |
|
| District 10[14] | Alison Alter Sheri Gallo (i) |
Nicholas Virden Robert Walker |
| *Garza and Zimmerman voted for the bond in an initial vote on August 11, 2016, but abstained from the final vote on August 18, 2016. | ||
Homestead tax exemption
In 2015, the city council voted to increase Austin's homestead tax exemption to 6 percent and commit to raising it to 20 percent within four years.[15] The commitment to continue increasing the exemption put it back on the city council's agenda in 2016. In June, the council upped the exemption to 8 percent.[16]
District 2 Councilwoman Garza and District 4 Councilman Casar, who represent lower-income, renter-heavy districts, voted against both increases.[15][16] Garza described the exemption as regressive in a 2015 op-ed, saying, "During the campaign trail, my initial thought was to support a homestead exemption. Then I saw the numbers. Numbers which definitively show that any benefit from a homestead exemption is directed towards the wealthiest Austinites with little, if any, benefit to the very population that struggles most with our affordability crisis."[17] Casar characterized the 2016 exemption as a "symbolic gesture" that would have little impact for individual homeowners but would come at a cost to the city as a whole. "The cost of the exemption," he told The Austin Chronicle, "can potentially cost us our ability to kick off meaningful, innovative, new city programs that actually take on our constituents' needs."[18]
The other three incumbents who were up for re-election in 2016—District 6 Councilman Zimmerman, District 7 Councilwoman Pool, and District 10 Councilwoman Gallo—voted for both increases.[15][16] Zimmerman and Gallo also supported a 20 percent exemption in 2015.[19] Councilwoman Troxclair, who proposed the 20 percent exemption, said of the exemptions, "The idea this is something that benefits the rich more than the poor doesn't make any sense to me because the people who are coming to me on a consistent basis begging for some kind of relief from the constant cost-of-living increases in Austin, they're not rich people. They're people who are struggling to stay in their homes."[20][21]
The Austin Monitor surveyed the 2016 city council candidates' positions on the 2016 exemption increase. The candidates in District 10 all supported the increase. Opinions in the other districts were split. All of the 2016 candidates' positions are summarized in the table below.
| Austin City Council candidates' positions on the 8 percent homestead exemption | ||
|---|---|---|
| District | Supported | Opposed |
| District 2[10] | Casey Ramos | Wesley Faulkner Delia Garza (i) |
| District 4[11] | Gonzalo Camacho Louis Herrin III |
Gregorio Casar (i) |
| District 6[12] | Donald Zimmerman (i) | James Flannigan |
| District 7[13] | Leslie Pool (i) | Natalie Gauldin |
| District 10[14] | Alison Alter Sheri Gallo (i) Nicholas Virden Robert Walker |
|
Ride-sharing
In December 2015, the Austin City Council approved an ordinance requiring drivers for ride-sharing companies like Uber and Lyft to undergo fingerprint background checks. The ordinance, introduced by Councilwoman Ann Kitchen in response to reports of unwanted sexual contact in ride-sharing vehicles and as part of an effort to level the playing field for traditional cab companies, upped requirements for regulations in the industry.[22][23]
An Uber- and Lyft-backed proposal to roll back the ordinance went to the ballot in May 2016, but Austin voters opted to keep the city council's requirement in place.[24][25] Uber and Lyft subsequently discontinued service in the city.[26]
The Austin Monitor surveyed the 2016 city council candidates' positions on the fingerprint background check ordinance. The candidates in District 6 both opposed the ordinance. Opinions in the other districts were split. All of the 2016 candidates' positions are summarized in the table below.
| Austin City Council candidates' positions on the fingerprint background check ordinance | ||
|---|---|---|
| District | Supported | Opposed |
| District 2[10] | Delia Garza (i) Casey Ramos* |
Wesley Faulkner |
| District 4[11] | Gregorio Casar (i) Louis Herrin III |
Gonzalo Camacho |
| District 6[12] | James Flannigan Donald Zimmerman (i) | |
| District 7[13] | Leslie Pool (i) | Natalie Gauldin |
| District 10[14] | Sheri Gallo† (i) | Alison Alter Nicholas Virden Robert Walker |
| *According to the Monitor, Ramos supported fingerprinting, but would have backed a compromise to keep the ride-sharing companies operating in the city.
†According to the Monitor, Gallo backed the December ordinance but also favored accepting less stringent rules drafted by the ride-sharing companies over putting the ordinance to a public vote. | ||
About the city
- See also: Austin, Texas
Austin is the state capital of Texas. It is located in Travis County. As of 2010, its population was 790,390.
City government
- See also: Council-manager government
Since 1924, the city of Austin has utilized a council-manager system.[27] In this form of municipal government, an elected city council—which includes the mayor and serves as the city's primary legislative body—appoints a chief executive called a city manager to oversee day-to-day municipal operations and implement the council's policy and legislative initiatives.[28][29]
Demographics
The following table displays demographic data provided by the United States Census Bureau.
| Demographic Data for Austin, Texas | ||
|---|---|---|
| Austin | Texas | |
| Population | 790,390 | 25,145,561 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 319 | 261,266 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White | 72.6% | 74% |
| Black/African American | 7.8% | 12.1% |
| Asian | 7.6% | 4.8% |
| Native American | 0.7% | 0.5% |
| Pacific Islander | 0.1% | 0.1% |
| Other (single race) | 7.8% | 5.8% |
| Multiple | 3.5% | 2.7% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 33.9% | 39.3% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate | 89.4% | 83.7% |
| College graduation rate | 51.7% | 29.9% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income | $71,576 | $61,874 |
| Persons below poverty level | 13.2% | 14.7% |
| Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2010). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2014-2019). | ||
| **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Austin Texas election. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Austin, Texas | Texas | Municipal government | Other local coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ The Austin Bulldog, "10-1 Plan to Rule Council Elections," November 7, 2012
- ↑ KUT.org Austin’s Next City Council: Primarily Made of Newbies," April 12, 2013
- ↑ City of Austin, "New City Council Members Draw Term Lengths During Inauguration Ceremony," January 6, 2015
- ↑ Austin Chamber, "Austin Chamber Mobility Report," 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 The Austin Chronicle, "What Would $720 Million for Transportation Buy?" August 5, 2016
- ↑ Mayor Adler, "FAQs on Smart Corridor Plan," accessed October 26, 2016
- ↑ Austin American-Statesman, "Divided Austin City Council Puts $720 Million Bond on November Ballot," August 18, 2016
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Austin City Council, "City Council Regular Meeting Transcript - 08/18/2016," August 18, 2016
- ↑ Austin American-Statesman, "Austin Council Gives Initial OK to Put $720 Million Bond on Ballot," August 11, 2016
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Austin Monitor, "More Than a Yard Sign: An Incumbent, a Boxer and a Tech Guy in District 2," September 12, 2016
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Austin Monitor, "More Than a Yard Sign: A Near Repeat of 2014 in District 4 Race," September 13, 2016
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Austin Monitor, "More Than a Yard Sign: A Runoff Rematch in District 6," September 14, 2016
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Austin Monitor, "More Than a Yard Sign: Differing Ideas about How District 7 Should Grow," September 15, 2016
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Austin Monitor, "More Than a Yard Sign" Straddling the Aisle in District 10," September 16, 2016
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 KUT, "Council Adopts 6 Percent Homestead Exemption," June 5, 2015
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 Austin American-Statesman, "Austin City Council Narrowly Approves Larger Homestead Exemption," June 29, 2016
- ↑ Austin American-Statesman, "Garza: Homestead Exemption Is the Wrong Tool for Austin," June 2, 2015
- ↑ The Austin Chronicle, "Point Austin: Homestead Exemption Still Burning," July 22, 2016
- ↑ Austin City Council, "Regular Council Minutes," June 4, 2015
- ↑ Community Impact Newspaper, "UPDATED: Austin City Council Approves Increasing Homestead Exemption from 6% to 8%," June 24, 2016
- ↑ Fox 7, "Council Considers Homestead Exemption," May 6, 2015
- ↑ The Texas Tribune, "Austin Council Approves Stricter Rules for Uber, Lyft," December 17, 2015
- ↑ Recode, "Things Are Getting Ugly in Uber's and Lyft's Fight against Fingerprint Checks in Austin," January 29, 2016
- ↑ Austin American-Statesman, "Uber, Lyft Support Ballot Initiative on Austin's Ride-Hailing Rules," December 28, 2015
- ↑ KXAN, "Prop 1 Fails, Marking Defeat for Uber and Lyft in Austin," May 7, 2016
- ↑ The New York Times, "How Austin Beat Uber," May 12, 2016
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedgov - ↑ Office of the City Manager, "About," accessed August 19, 2014
- ↑ Austin City Charter V 1-3, accessed August 26, 2014
 |
State of Texas Austin (capital) |
|---|---|
| Elections |
What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2025 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures |
| Government |
Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy |
