AUSTIN, Texas — Austin mayoral and city council candidates have started officially filing for their names to appear on the ballot.
Mayor Kirk Watson filed his paperwork on Monday, July 22, and so did Councilmember Vanessa Fuentes (District 2), who is running for reelection as well. On Tuesday, July 23, Councilmember Mackenzie Kelly (District 6) also filed her paperwork.
As of Thursday, Aug. 8, former city council member and Mayor Pro Tem Katie Tovo, community organizer Carmen Llanes Pulido and interfaith organizer Doug Greco have also filed to run for mayor. Robert Reynolds has also filed for District 2 and Monica Guzman has filed for District 4.
Other candidates have announced they're running but have yet to submit a form to appear on the ballot. They have until Aug. 19 at 5 p.m. to do that.
Watson officially announced his reelection campaign in April. He has been serving his current term since the start of last year. If he is reelected on Nov. 5, he will continue to serve as Austin's mayor until 2029.
In his campaign announcement, Watson said that since starting his role in 2023, he has helped the city by adding housing reforms, filling empty positions within the Austin Police Department, launching the Austin Infrastructure Academy and working to help the city's homelessness concerns.
If Watson is reelected, he said he wants to make climate change response more of a priority, in part by closing down part of Austin Energy's Fayette Power Plant.
In 1997, Watson was elected to his first term as Austin's mayor. He was reelected twice, serving in the role until 2001. Watson was elected to the Texas Senate in 2006 and served as a state senator for 13 years.
In the November 2022 general election, Watson advanced to a runoff election against former State Rep. Celia Israel in the Austin mayoral race. Watson won the runoff in December 2022 and was sworn in as mayor of Austin for a second time on Jan. 6, 2023.