Rey Guevara
Rey Guevara was a candidate for District 4 representative on the San Antonio City Council in Texas. Guevara was defeated in the general election on May 6, 2017.
The city council is a nonpartisan body. Guevara stated he did not identify with any political party in his response to Ballotpedia's 2017 candidate survey. He went on to state, "I describe myself as a 'bleeding heart libertarian.' I believe in small government and deregulation, provided policies respect the poor and vulnerable."[1]
Biography
Guevara was born May 1, 1992. He attended Northwest Vista College for an associate degree and did some undergraduate studies at the University of Texas at San Antonio. As of April 2017, he had worked predominately in youth ministry and music education. Guevara described his volunteer experience to Ballotpedia, saying, "I've volunteered at the local and state level my entire adult life advocating for policies that respect the dignity of life from conception to natural death."[1]
Elections
2017
The city of San Antonio, Texas, held general elections for mayor and all 10 of its city council seats on May 6, 2017. Candidates had to earn a majority of the votes cast in this election to win. Any race where no candidate received a majority (50 percent plus one) of the general election votes cast for that position advanced to a runoff election on June 10, 2017. Incumbent Rey Saldaña defeated Johnny Arredondo and Rey Guevara in the general election for the District 4 seat on the San Antonio City Council.[2]
| San Antonio City Council, District 4 General Election, 2017 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Rey Saldaña Incumbent |
78.36% | 3,455 |
| Johnny Arredondo | 14.47% | 638 |
| Rey Guevara | 7.17% | 316 |
| Total Votes | 4,409 | |
| Source: Bexar County, Texas, "May 6, 2017 Media Report," May 18, 2017 | ||
Campaign themes
2017
Guevara participated in Ballotpedia's 2017 survey of municipal government candidates.[3] The following sections display his responses to the survey questions. When asked what his top priority would be if elected, the candidate made the following statement:
| “ | Reducing the tax burden for San Antonians.[4] | ” |
| —Rey Guevara (April 25, 2017)[1] | ||
Ranking the issues
The candidate was asked to rank the following issues by importance in the city, with 1 being the most important and 12 being the least important: city services (trash, utilities, etc.), civil rights, crime reduction/prevention, environment, government transparency, homelessness, housing, K-12 education, public pensions/retirement funds, recreational opportunities, transportation, and unemployment. This table displays this candidate's rankings from most to least important.
| Issue importance ranking | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking |
Issue | Candidate's ranking |
Issue |
| Government transparency | No item ranked at this value by the candidate. | ||
| Homelessness | No item ranked at this value by the candidate. | ||
| Environment | No item ranked at this value by the candidate. | ||
| Housing | No item ranked at this value by the candidate. | ||
| Recreational opportunities | No item ranked at this value by the candidate. | ||
| No item ranked at this value by the candidate. | No item ranked at this value by the candidate. | ||
Local topics
Ballotpedia asked candidates specific questions regarding recent issues in the city. The questions are in the left column and the candidate's responses are in the right column.
| Question | Response |
|---|---|
| I am opposed to the use of eminent domain in the project. | |
| I am for the full legalization of marijuana in Texas. As far as the city's approach, we can begin with a policy of ticketing non-violent offenders instead of arrest. | |
| I believe we should take a position of nullification/defiance. Let the state figure out a way to enforce it. | |
| No. SAPD is not an immigration enforcement entity. They have more important work to do. |
Nationwide municipal issues
The candidate was asked to answer questions from Ballotpedia regarding issues facing cities across America. The questions are in the left column and the candidate's responses are in the right column. Some questions provided multiple choices, which are noted after those questions.
| Question | Response |
|---|---|
| Very important | |
| None | |
| Public outreach/education programs. Deregulation. If SAPD spends less time enforcing bad laws, they can focus on violent crime and safe neighborhoods. | |
| Regulatory and licensing reforms, and tax reform. I'd also add reconsideration of current zoning and development priorities. | |
| The people of San Antonio love each other in a way that is unlike any other community I've seen. Everyone says San Antonio is a "big city with a small town feel." Our strength is in our sense of community. | |
| The city has always focused on the northside for economic growth. It's time to prioritize south side. Everyone in the city will benefit from economic growth in new areas of the city. |
Guevara also stated in his survey response:
| “ | I believe in personal and economic liberty. I want to get the government out of the way of the average citizen so we can all chase our dreams on our own terms.[4] | ” |
| —Rey Guevara (April 25, 2017)[1] | ||
See also
| San Antonio, Texas | Texas | Municipal government | Other local coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Ballotpedia's municipal government candidate survey, 2017, "Rey Guevara's Responses," April 25, 2017
- ↑ City of San Antonio, "Candidate Listings," accessed February 21, 2017
- ↑ Note: The candidate's answers have been reproduced here verbatim without edits or corrections by Ballotpedia.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
