Municipal elections in Travis County, Texas (2016)
2018 →
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| 2016 Travis County elections |
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| Election dates |
| Filing deadline: December 14, 2015 |
| Primary election: March 1, 2016 Primary runoff: May 24, 2016 General election: November 8, 2016 |
| Election stats |
| Offices up: County commission, constables, county attorney, sheriff, county tax assessor-collector, and special districts |
| Other municipal elections |
| U.S. municipal elections, 2016 |
With Sheriff Greg Hamilton (D) not running for re-election, Harris County voters elected a new sheriff in 2016. The open race attracted four Democrats, one Republican, one Libertarian, and one Green Party candidate. Sally Hernandez, a Travis County constable, won the Democratic primary and faced Joe Martinez (R), Eric Guerra (L), and Debbie Russell (G) in the general election. Martinez did not face any opposition in the Republican primary. Much debate between the candidates focused on immigration and deportation. Read more about this race below.
A primary election was held on March 1, 2016, and primary runoffs were held on May 24, 2016. The filing deadline for those wishing to run in this election was December 14, 2015.[1]
The following county positions were up for election in 2018: the judge and district representatives two and four of the county commissioners court, the five justices of the peace, the district attorney, county clerk, district clerk, and county treasurer.
This election was one of Ballotpedia's top 10 local-level races in 2016. Click here to read the full list.
Elections
County commission
Commissioners court
To learn which district you live in, click here.
District 1☐ Pat McCord Defeated in primary
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District 3☑ Gerald Daugherty Defeated in primary |
Other county officials
County attorney☑ David Escamilla |
County sheriff☐ Joe Martinez Defeated in primary
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County tax assessor-collector☑ Bruce Elfant |
District attorney |
Constables
Constable precincts
To learn which precinct you live in, click here.
Precinct 1☑ Danny Thomas Defeated in primary
Precinct 2☑ Adan Ballesteros |
Precinct 3Defeated in primaryPrecinct 4Defeated in primaryPrecinct 5☑ Carlos Lopez |
Special districts
Austin Community College District Board of Trustees
All places on this board are at-large positions.
The elections for Places 4 and 9 advanced to a runoff election on December 13, 2016, because no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote in the general election. In the runoff races, Sean Hassan defeated Michael Lewis for Place 4, and Julie Ann Nitsch defeated Guadalupe Sosa for Place 9. Advancement to a runoff election is indicated with the following symbol: 
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Place 4
☐ George Robinson
☑ Sean Hassan
☐ Michael Lewis
Place 5
☐ Thomas Miranda
☑ Nicole Eversmann
☐ Anthony Schoggins
Place 6
☐ Douglas Gibbins
☑ Nora De Hoyos Comstock
Place 9
☐ Guadalupe Sosa
☐ Mitch Fuller
☑ Julie Ann Nitsch
☐ Jeremy Story
Ballot measures
| 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
Sheriff's race
Travis County Sheriff Greg Hamilton (D), who took office in 2005, did not run for re-election in 2016. Joe Martinez (R), Sally Hernandez (D), Libertarian candidate Eric Guerra, and Green Party candidate Debbie Russell faced each other in the general election on November 8, 2016. Martinez was unopposed in the Republican primary, and Hernandez defeated three opponents in the Democratic primary, narrowly avoiding a primary runoff by earning just over 50 percent of the vote.[2]
Martinez has worked as a private investigator since 2003, when he retired from the District Attorney's Office. Hernandez took office as the Precinct 3 constable in Travis County in January 2013. Prior to that, she also worked at the District Attorney's Office. The main talking point in the race was the candidates' divergent views of the appropriate relationship and level of cooperation between the sheriff's office and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).[3]
Immigration
The Secure Communities program, or "S-Comm," has been a controversial topic in Travis County. S-Comm is a program developed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in which local law enforcement agencies submit fingerprints of deportable detainees to the FBI and to immigration databases, holding detainees up to 48 hours until ICE takes custody. Advocates of this type of program say it is important to homeland security and public safety. Opponents argue that the program tears families apart by deporting people who were arrested for minor infractions. Sheriff Greg Hamilton had been a supporter of S-Comm, although the city council of Austin approved a resolution that aimed to convince the sheriff's office to opt out of participating in the program. At the time of the election, Travis County had deported about 19 people per week since 2009, according to a 2014 article by the Austin Chronicle.[4]
Martinez said that he would continue Sheriff Hamilton's practices in regards to S-Comm and cooperation with ICE. He said that following "sanctuary city" policies "needlessly and recklessly endangers public safety" and accused Hernandez of having an "extreme position on this issue," calling her "Sanctuary Sally."[3] CNN described "sanctuary cities" the following way:[5]
| “ | There's no legal definition of a sanctuary city, county or state, and what it means varies from place to place. But jurisdictions that fall under that controversial term -- supporters oppose it -- generally have policies or laws that limit the extent to which law enforcement and other government employees will go to assist the federal government on immigration matters.[6] | ” |
Hernandez said that she would "redefine Travis County’s relationship with ICE," and would have open communication and cooperation with the agency. "So I will consider individualized ICE detainer requests, but I will not agree with abusive, overbroad, blanket ICE detainer requests," she said.[3]
Below are longer statements from the two candidates on the subject of immigration, deportation, and ICE.
Joe Martinez
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Sally Hernandez
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About the county
- See also: Travis County, Texas
The county government of Travis County is located in Austin, Texas. The county was first established in 1840.[9]
County government
- See also: Government of Travis County, Texas
Travis County is overseen by a five-member commissioners court. Four commissioners are elected by district to four-year terms. The head of the commissioners court, the county judge, is elected county-wide. Residents also elect a county attorney, district attorney, county clerk, district clerk, county sheriff, county tax assessor-collector, county treasurer, five constables, and five justices of the peace.
Demographics
The following table displays demographic data provided by the United States Census Bureau.
| Demographic Data for Travis County, Texas | ||
|---|---|---|
| Travis County | Texas | |
| Population | 1,024,266 | 25,145,561 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 992 | 261,266 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White | 72.5% | 74% |
| Black/African American | 8.3% | 12.1% |
| Asian | 6.7% | 4.8% |
| Native American | 0.6% | 0.5% |
| Pacific Islander | 0.1% | 0.1% |
| Other (single race) | 8.2% | 5.8% |
| Multiple | 3.6% | 2.7% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 33.8% | 39.3% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate | 89.3% | 83.7% |
| College graduation rate | 50% | 29.9% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income | $75,887 | $61,874 |
| Persons below poverty level | 12% | 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 Travis County Texas election. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Travis County, Texas | Texas | Municipal government | Other local coverage |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "Important 2016 Election Dates," accessed September 1, 2016
- ↑ KXAN, "Sally Hernandez wins Democratic nomination for Travis County Sheriff," March 2, 2016
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Austin American-Statesman, "Candidates for Travis County sheriff answer our questions," September 24, 2016
- ↑ Austin Chronicle, "Cold as ICE," July 4, 2014
- ↑ CNN, "What's a 'sanctuary city,' and why should you care?" July 8, 2015
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Texas Insider, "Statement From Travis County Sheriff Candidate Joe Martinez," October 7, 2016
- ↑ Sally Hernandez campaign website, "Immigration," accessed October 14, 2016
- ↑ Texas State Historical Association, "Travis County," accessed September 20, 2016
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