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Voters in New Braunfels will head to the polls one more time Saturday to determine an unprecedented mayoral race and a city council seat.
None of the candidates in either race earned the necessary 50% + one vote to win their respective race outright, so a runoff between the top two vote-getters in each race will determine the winner.
Last month, the City of New Braunfels said it was “deeply sorry” after officials prematurely declared Michael Alexander French (49%) as the winner of its May 2 mayoral election over incumbent Mayor Neal Linnartz (38.25%) and two other candidates.
French was initially declared victorious because, according to a city charter measure passed in 1995, he was the candidate who earned the most votes (plurality) in the mayoral race.
A 1958 amendment to the Texas Constitution states that any office term longer than two years “must be elected by a majority vote (50% + one vote).”
While the plurality rule was in effect, the city also noted that every mayoral election since 1995 was won by a candidate who earned the majority vote.
When City of New Braunfels officials realized the city’s charter was at odds with the Texas Constitution, they reversed course and announced the June 13 runoff.
The “significant mistake,” which is how officials described their snafu, drew ire from the runoff candidates, residents and resulted in New Braunfels council members voting to terminate now-former City Attorney Valeria Acevedo.
This mayoral contest is actual a sort of rematch from 2023, when Linnartz was first elected as mayor, with 56% of the vote. French finished second in that race with 27%. Before that, French made a run for U.S. Rep. Chip Roy’s district 20 seat in 2022, but didn’t get past the primary.
In New Braunfels’ District 6 City Council race, Nikki L. Shaw and incumbent April Ryan will face each other for the seat. Shaw (43.9%) and Ryan (33%) earned the most votes on May 2, but neither garnered enough for the 50% + one vote majority.
Alamo Colleges District
Some voters in Bexar County will have a decision to make Saturday, as well.
On May 2, none of the four candidates who ran in the Alamo Colleges Board of Trustees District 9 race received a majority of the vote.
Both Robert Garcia and Carolyn DeLecour were separated by 16 votes, but they earned 29% of the vote to head to Saturday’s runoff. To give an idea of how tight the May 2 race was, incumbent Leslie Sachanowicz (26%) finished 137 votes behind DeLeCour in third place.
Del Rio
Voters in Del Rio, located in Val Verde County, will also head to the polls to select their mayor Saturday. Originally, there were six candidates who appeared on last month’s ballot.
Incumbent Alvaro “Al” Arreola (829 votes on May 2) and Efrain V. Valdez (792 votes on May 2) were the the top two to emerge, but both candidates fell well short of the 50% + one vote majority.
Election day is Saturday, June 13. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Find more election coverage on the Vote 2026 page.