SAN ANTONIO ā UPDATE (3:19 p.m.): A majority of the San Antonio City Council voted Thursday to move municipal elections from May to November.
In a 6-5 vote, including the vote in favor of the move by Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones, the city is scheduled to hold mayoral and city council elections beginning in November 2029.
The vote was split equally between the 10 council members. In addition to Jones, Jalen McKee-Rodriguez (District 2), Phyllis Viagran (District 3), Edward Munguia (District 4), Ric Galvan (District 6) and Misty Spears (District 9) all voted in favor of the move.
The five dissenters were Sukh Kaur (District 1), Teri Castillo (District 5), Marina Alderete Gavito (District 7), Ivalis Meza Gonzalez (District 8) and Marc Whyte (District 10).
āI feel great for our community,ā Jones said, in part, after the vote. āIām really thankful that so many of my colleagues supported this and did the right thing.ā
Below is the original Thursday story.
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ORIGINAL: A monumental change to how San Antonio residents vote for their future mayor and city council representatives was a topic of discussion outside and inside City Hall on Thursday.
During Thursdayās city council meeting scheduled for 9 a.m., Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones and the cityās 10 council members are expected to decide whether or not they will move those elections from May to November in odd-numbered years.
Their vote was made possible by a change in state law that went into effect earlier this year.
The law change was aimed at allowing the City of Dallas to shift its election date. San Antonio and other cities can also take advantage of it without changing their city charters, but they would have to act by Dec. 31.
Jones, who has voiced support for the election calendar change, has also scheduled a news conference at 8 a.m. on the City Hall steps.
Before the council vote Thursday, Jones and Dolores Huerta, a civil rights activist who co-founded the United Farm Workers labor union alongside CƩsar ChƔvez, discussed the matter on the steps of City Hall.
Joining them were several community leaders from across San Antonio and other local leaders.
Watch the full 8 a.m. press conference in the video player below.
City staff estimated that an election change from May to November could save the city between $800,000 and $1 million.
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