On May 9, 2015, the city of San Antonio, Texas, held an election to choose the next Mayor of San Antonio. Interim mayor Ivy Taylor ran for election to a full term and narrowly defeated former state senator Leticia Van de Putte in the runoff election on June 13, 2015, to become the first African American elected to the position. The election was officially nonpartisan.
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| Turnout | 14.12%  (first round) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Background
editJulian Castro, who was first elected mayor in the 2009 mayoral election, was selected in 2014 to become the next United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Upon that announcement, State Representative Mike Villarreal immediately announced he would run to succeed Castro in the 2015 election.[1] Once Castro was confirmed by the U.S. Senate, the San Antonio City Council selected Ivy Taylor as interim mayor by a third-round unanimous vote becoming the city's first African-American mayor.[2]
In November 2014, after losing the race to become Lieutenant Governor of Texas, outgoing State Senator Leticia Van de Putte announced she would run for mayor despite earlier reports saying she would not seek the position.[3] Additionally, in spite of earlier promises that Taylor would not run for a full term in the May election, she ultimately entered the race in February 2015.[4]
Candidates
editAfter the deadline to file passed, four candidates (Adkisson, Taylor, Van de Putte and Villarreal) were considered the frontrunners in the race, though none of them were able to poll above fifty percent and avoid a runoff.
Declared
edit- Tommy Adkisson, former Bexar County Commissioner[5]
- Cynthia Brehm[6]
- Cynthia Cavazos[6]
- Douglas Emmett[6]
- Michael Idrogo[6]
- Paul Martinez, retired Army major[7]
- Pogo Mochello Reese[6]
- Julie Iris Oldham, perennial candidate[6]
- Gerard Ponce, former Bexar County Court Coordinator and 2014 Republican candidate for Bexar County Judge[6]
- Rhett Smith, perennial candidate and Green Party activist[6]
- Ivy Taylor, Mayor of San Antonio and former city councilwoman
- Leticia Van de Putte, former state senator and Democratic nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Texas in 2014
- Mike Villarreal, former state representative
- Raymond Zavala, community organizer and previous mayoral candidate[6]
Endorsements
edititalicized individuals and organizations are post-regular election endorsements
- Annie's List
- Tommy Calvert, Bexar County Commissioner[10]
- Shirley Gonzales, current City Councilwoman, District 5[10]
- Bill Greehey, Chairman of the Board of NuStar Energy L.P.[10]
- Phil Hardberger, Mayor of San Antonio (2005-2009)[10]
- Gordon Hartman, San Antonio businessman, philanthropist and developer of Morgan's Wonderland[10]
- Ray Lopez, current City Councilman, District 6[10]
- Ruth McClendon, State Representative, District 120[10]
- Jose Menendez, Texas State Senator, District 26[10]
- Harvey Najim, San Antonio businessman and philanthropist[10]
- Howard Peak, Mayor of San Antonio (1997-2001)[10]
- San Antonio Express-News[11]
- San Antonio Police Officers Association[10]
- San Antonio Professional Firefighters Association[10]
- Alan Warrick, current City Councilman, District 2[10]
- Nelson Wolff, Bexar County Judge and Mayor of San Antonio (1991-1995)[10]
- Joaquin Castro, United States Congressman, Texas District 20 (endorsed Van de Putte in runoff)[12]
- Philip Cortez, state representative[12]
- Delicia Herrera, former City Councilwoman, District 6[12]
- James Howard, Board of Trustees member for San Antonio Independent School District[12]
- John Folks, former Superintendent of Northside Independent School District (endorsed Van de Putte in runoff)[12]
- Richard Middleton, former Superintendent of Northeast Independent School District[12]
- Marisa B. Perez, member of Texas State Board of Education[12]
- Carlos Uresti, Texas State Senator (endorsed Van de Putte in runoff)[12]
Polling
edit| Poll Source | Date(s) administered |
Tommy Adkisson |
Ivy Taylor |
Leticia Van de Putte |
Mike Villarreal |
Other/ Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anderson Williams Research | April 29, 2015 | 17% | 24% | 29% | 18% | 11% |
Results
editFirst round
editThis section's factual accuracy is disputed. (April 2020) |
On May 9, 2015, the election for mayor was held. None of the leading candidates received more than 50% of the vote and as a result, a runoff election was scheduled for Saturday, June 13, 2015, between the top two vote getters.[13]
| Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Leticia Van de Putte | 25,982 | 30.43% | |
| ✓ | Ivy Taylor | 24,245 | 28.40% | |
| Mike Villarreal | 22,246 | 26.06% | ||
| Tommy Adkisson | 8,344 | 9.77% | ||
| Paul Martinez | 1,877 | 2.20% | ||
| Cynthia Brehm | 1,497 | 1.75% | ||
| Douglas Emmett | 221 | 0.26% | ||
| Michael "Commander" Idrogo | 221 | 0.26% | ||
| Cynthia Cavazos | 201 | 0.24% | ||
| Raymond Zavala | 196 | 0.23% | ||
| Rhett Smith | 111 | 0.13% | ||
| Julie Iris Oldham (Mama Bexar) | 103 | 0.12% | ||
| Gerard Ponce | 97 | 0.11% | ||
| Pogo Mochello Reese | 29 | 0.03% | ||
| Turnout | 85,370 | 11.89%* | ||
* Vote percentage include all of Bexar County with a total of 12,316 either voting in another municipal election or casting no ballot for San Antonio mayor.
Runoff
editMore people voted in the runoff election for mayor than did in the regular election on May 9, 2015. Taylor found most of her support from conservatives within the city who typically reside on the north side and from her former city council district on the east side. Meanwhile, Van de Putte performed best on the west and south sides of town.[14]
| Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Ivy Taylor | 50,662 | 51.70% | |
| Leticia Van de Putte | 47,331 | 48.30% | ||
| Turnout | 97,993 | 14.12% | ||
Notes
edit- ^ Taylor was serving as interim mayor following the resignation of Julian Castro.
References
edit- ^ "Villarreal Resigning to Run for San Antonio Mayor". The Texas Tribune. November 9, 2014. Retrieved November 19, 2014.
- ^ Baugh, Josh (July 22, 2014). "Ivy Taylor becomes mayor". San Antonio Express-News. Hearst Corporation. Retrieved August 6, 2014.
- ^ Nicole Perez. "EXCLUSIVE: Van de Putte announces mayoral bid". KSAT. Archived from the original on February 5, 2015. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
- ^ Baugh, Josh (February 16, 2015). "Ivy Taylor to run for mayor of San Antonio, joining a crowded field". San Antonio Express-News. Hearst Corporation. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
- ^ Beltran, Jacob (December 29, 2014). "Adkisson joins 2015 mayoral race". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved December 29, 2014.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Candidate Listing". City of San Antonio. Retrieved March 3, 2015.
- ^ Garcia, Gilbert (November 8, 2014). "The mayor of Kalsu brings it home to S.A." San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved December 29, 2014.
- ^ "Mayor draws runoff backing from Adkisson". San Antonio Express-News. May 22, 2015. Retrieved May 23, 2015.
- ^ "District 10 Councilmember Mike Gallagher Endorses Ivy Taylor". Rivard Report. May 29, 2015. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Leticia Van de Putte". Facebook. Retrieved April 17, 2015.
- ^ "Van de Putte is best choice for mayor". San Antonio Express-News. April 26, 2015. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Testimonials". Mike Villarreal for Mayor. Retrieved April 17, 2015.
- ^ "Municipal elections in San Antonio, Texas (2015)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
- ^ "Taylor Becomes San Antonio's First Elected Black Mayor". Rivard Report. June 14, 2015. Retrieved June 14, 2015.
- ^ "BEXAR COUNTY. TEXAS Unofficial Results RUNOFF ELECTION JUNE 13 . 2015" (PDF). City of San Antonio. Retrieved March 4, 2016.