SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio will move its municipal elections from May to November in odd-numbered years after a 6-5 council vote Thursday afternoon.
The vote means the next time San Antonio voters will elect a mayor and council members will be in November 2029.
The decision came after a last-minute blitz by Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones, who said she only learned of the opportunity last month.
The mayor was able to quickly rally support among numerous activist and community groups — as well as former San Antonio mayors — who hope the move will boost turnout in the city’s mayoral and council races.
“I think you heard from so many folks that have been working on voter access for a very long time, nationally and locally,” Jones told reporters after the vote. “And so, this is a big step forward. And I’m really thankful that so many of my colleagues supported this and did the right thing.”
Jones was joined by Jalen McKee-Rodriguez (D2), Phyllis Viagran (D3), Edward Mungia (D4), Ric Galvan (D6) and Misty Spears (D9) who voted in favor of a shift.
Sukh Kaur (D1), Teri Castillo (D5), Marina Alderete Gavito (D7), Ivalis Meza Gonzalez (D8) and Marc Whyte (D10) voted against changing the election dates.
Their concerns included the its potential effect on school districts, the quick turnaround to make this decision and the fact that the change would be made without voter approval.
“I do find it quite ironic that we’re talking about voting but saying we don’t need to take this to a vote,” Castillo said.
The switch was made possible by a change in state law, made with the City of Dallas in mind. However, it also allowed San Antonio and other cities to do the same, as long as they acted by Dec. 31.
Though the law change took effect in June, Jones said she only learned of it in November, leading to the last-minute push.
Some opponents indicated they were open to shifting the election but wanted more voter involvement.
Alderete Gavito and Whyte both raised the possibility of San Antonio holding a vote to change its charter in 2027.
The city would still need the help of the state legislature to change its election date, which Jones said the city couldn’t depend on.
San Antonio Assistant City Manager Jeff Coyle, who oversees the city’s lobbying efforts, acknowledged “there’s never a guarantee with the legislature."
The vote came after more than four-and-a-half hours worth of public comment and council discussion.
During the meeting Thursday, dozens of supporters urged the council to make the change. They focused on the likelihood of an increased voter turnout.
“Because people are used to voting in November. Because it’s efficient. Because we have all year where we start thinking about the elections and you make an opportunity to do that," said Lydia Camarillo, president of the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project.
Unlike the high-turnout November elections during even years when the ballot is filled with high-profile races for president, governor, senate or congress, the November ballot in odd-numbered years are dominated by state constitutional amendments, smaller cities and school districts.
Since 2015, the number of voters from across the entirety of Bexar County who vote in odd-year November elections has typically been approximately the same or less than those who vote in San Antonio’s mayoral elections in May.
The notable exception was November 2025, when funding for a downtown Spurs arena spurred people to the polls.
Supporters said there is more attention and awareness of November as an election date and believe a shift to the fall would boost turnout.
McKee-Rodriguez also said the council could make the change to the odd-year election Thursday and consider a switch to an even-year November election later.
After the vote, Jones indicated that she was open to idea of another shift.
“You know, what folks have always argued for, keeping it in an odd year — November of an odd year — is that it keeps it still non-partisan,“ Jones said. “But when you look at what Austin has — Austin has it in November of an even year, right? So, I think, this is an ongoing conversation, but I’m really glad today that we got this done and got a bit of a win."
The current mayor and council members, whose terms were just doubled from two to four years, will also remain in office an additional six months as part of the changeover process.
“For us to just extend our terms from four years to four-and-a-half years feels extremely icky and wrong to me,” Alderete Gavito said.
Jones had also said moving the election to November could save the city money, citing an estimate of $800,000 to $1 million that City Manager Erik Walsh had given her. However, city staff said it’s difficult to tell without knowing which other entities would participate.
Numbers presented by city staff also indicated the city spent $1.3 million on a November 2024 charter election, compared to $634,000, in the May 2023 election or $470,000, in the May 2025 election, not including their resulting runoffs.
The vote is a high-profile victory for Jones after failed charges to change council policy-making procedures and to slow down a funding deal for a new Spurs arena.
She was also the lone vote against a change to animal abandonment fines. However, at least two council members later said they didn’t realize what they had approved would not cover people who dump their own pets.
The mayor, though, characterized Thursday’s as a “win for the community.”
“This was the community making sure that we did everything possible to ensure our government works best,” Jones said. “And that means having more people participate and that means moving it to November.”
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