SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones issued a public apology Tuesday for “raising her voice” and “using profanity” after a confrontation with District 1 Councilwoman Sukh Kaur earlier this month.
The press conference came ahead of the City Council’s decision on whether to censure Jones over the confrontation. That vote is expected Friday.
“Where I come from and how I was raised, when you make a mistake, you apologize,” Jones said at the top of the press conference.
Jones, while making the public apology to reporters at City Hall, said she had apologized to Kaur privately.
“I wanted to make sure that everyone knew that I had done the right thing and certainly apologized for hurting her feelings,” Jones said. “That was certainly never my intention.”
The mayor pointed to her military experiences, which gave her “a different set of experiences” to view things “a little bit differently,” she said.
“I should not have raised my voice. I should not have used profanity, and for that, I apologize,” Jones said.
Watch Tuesday’s press conference in the video player below:
‘Verbally abusive’
The incident with Kaur took place in a break room on the morning of a Feb. 5 City Council meeting and stemmed from an agenda item about the Bonham Exchange and fire sprinkler regulations. Kaur filed a complaint on Feb. 9 under the City Council Code of Conduct.
In the complaint, which the city released Monday night, Kaur alleges Jones “used profanity, abusive language, and intimidating behavior directed at me and in close proximity to others in the room,” according to a copy of her complaint.
Kaur did not specify what the mayor said or did, and the findings of the resulting investigation haven’t been publicly released.
However, a proposed censure resolution, which was posted online Monday night, states Jones was “verbally abusive” and censures her “for her unacceptable conduct towards a fellow Councilmember on February 5, 2026, and for prior inappropriate interactions with councilmembers, city staff and constituents.”
Those “prior inappropriate interactions” are not specified.
Jones did not answer questions during Tuesday’s news conference about what she specifically said or did during the encounter with Kaur, or whether she believed “verbally abusive” was an accurate description.
Censure may not be the end
The proposed resolution also calls for Jones to issue Kaur a written apology, participate in in-person leadership training, and to step aside as chairwoman of the Governance Committee until she has either completed the training or three months have passed — whichever is longer.
During questions after the press conference, Jones did not directly address if she would take on leadership training, rather encouraging the entire council could take it on as a “worthwhile initiative.”
“I think we should all have a common frame of reference about leadership and accountability," she said.
Jones said she did not plan to step aside from her Governance Committee chair position, pointing to the issue that preceded the confrontation as being different.
“When I elevated my voice because I became passionate about public safety, our number one responsibility as elected leaders is to keep people safe,” Jones said. “And I became passionate because I frankly sided with the fire chief and her recommendations.”
Jones said that was “separate and distinct” from her Governance Committee work.
Her stance on following the resolution’s stipulations could keep the grievance going beyond Friday’s vote.
“I am in conversation with other council colleagues who have seen the video (of Jones’ press conference) and are not happy with it, and we will see ... what our next steps are regarding this," said Councilwoman Phyllis Viagran (D3), who was one of the five councilwomen who called for considering a censure vote.
Councilman Marc Whyte (D10), who has often clashed with Jones, said “at this point” Jones would have to agree to follow the requests on training and her committee chair position.
“There’s potentially other steps that that council could take in terms of ordinances and things like that,” he told KSAT. “But again, we’ll see what happens on Friday.”
The proposed resolution concludes by calling for Jones to comply with the resolution “as evidence of mutual reaffirmation of civility, accountability, and fostering a professional workplace environment.”
“Actions that demonstrate a lack of commitment (sic) may result in City Council taking further action such as a call for a vote of no confidence,” it states.
Kaur has said she plans to make all of her comments after Friday’s vote.
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