SAN ANTONIO – Mayor Ivy Taylor will be sworn in Tuesday and become the first African-American elected mayor in San Antonio, but during a sometimes bruising campaign, a lot of questions rose about her husband Rodney and his business dealings.
Taylor and her husband, an intensely private man, sat down with KSAT's Steve Spriester to clear the air and opened up about his family.
"The election is over, so now people get a chance to hear a little bit from me," said Rodney Taylor.
A man who prefers to be low key was thrust into the spotlight holding his wife's hand on election night. The couple said their emotions in this moment were very different.
"Excitement, relief, gratitude, a whole host of emotions," said Mayor Ivy Tayor.
"My thought was, it's over, the trial that we had to go through as a family had come to an end, and so I was very excited," said Rodney Taylor.
Rodney Taylor grew up on San Antonio's East Side and met Ivy Taylor at church. Both credit their faith with helping them through the election, including questions about his business and car being shot up in a drive-by.
"I had never experienced anything like that in my life and I have lived over here most of my life," says Rodney Taylor.
Rodney Taylor and his business weren't the shooter's target, but it was questioned in the campaign one of a series of what Rodney Taylor calls "attacks."
"It was an attack on a spouse, not a question, an attack on my character, and the character of my family," says Rodney Taylor.
"At the end of the day, the story I want folks to know is that Rodney Taylor is a great husband, a great father, a deacon in the church," said Ivy Taylor.
Rodney was even given a "plaque of appreciation" from the San Antonio Police Department for his service. The Taylors are also very protective of the image of East Side neighborhoods, a place they call home.
"Hey we are all in this together, and I am the mayor for all of San Antonio, and I'm focused on ensuring that we continue on a great trajectory and a great path," said Ivy Taylor.
"I told her when I first met her that, 'You're going to do something big, I don't know what it is, but you're going to do something big.' I'm assuming that this is it, I don't know (if) it could be something bigger. I don't know," said Rodney Taylor.