The2022 Austin mayoral election was held on November 8, 2022, to elect the nextmayor ofAustin, Texas . The election wasnonpartisan ; candidates' party affiliations did not appear on the ballot. Incumbent mayorSteve Adler was term-limited and could not run for re-election. In the general election, state representativeCelia Israel and former mayorKirk Watson took the first two spots, leading realtor Jennifer Virden and several other candidates. Because no candidate received more than 50% of the vote, the race proceeded to arunoff election between Israel and Watson on December 13, which Watson won by 924 votes.[ 1]
Due to the passage of Proposition D in 2021, which scheduled mayoral elections in Austin to coincide withpresidential elections , the winner of this election served a shortened two-year term.[ 2]
The election occurred concurrently withdistrict city council races .
Though the election was officiallynonpartisan , the runoff candidates,Celia Israel andKirk Watson , were both affiliated with theDemocratic Party .[ 3] [ 4]
Steven Pedigo, director of UT's LBJ Urban Lab, indicated that Watson's support was centralized with longtime residences of Austin in areas like the Northwest, and Israel's support was with younger demographics in growing and gentrifying areas of South and East Austin.[ 5] Beto O'Rourke , who drew out younger and more progressive voters, from appearing on the runoff ballot. Furthermore, voters who supported more conservative Virden were more inclined to opt for Watson in the runoff.[ 5]
Erica Nix, fitness instructor, performance artist, and LGBT activist (endorsed Israel )[ 14] [ 15] Celia Israel
U.S. Representatives
State legislators
Local officials
Dana Debeauvoir, formerTravis County Clerk[ 19] Delia Garza,Travis County Attorney[ 19] [ 20] Natasha Harper-MadisonAustin City Councillor ,District 1 [ 20] Vanessa Fuentes,Austin City Councillor ,District 2 [ 20] José "Chito" Vela,Austin City Councillor ,District 4 [ 20] Jimmy Flannigan, formerAustin City Councillor ,District 6 [ 20] Chris Riley, formerAustin City Councillor , At-Large[ 20] Organizations
Newspapers
Kirk Watson
State legislators
Sheryl Cole , state Representative from the 46th districtWendy Davis , former state Senator from the 10th district and 2014 Democratic nominee for Governor of TexasLocal officials
Andy Brown , Travis County JudgeJeff Travillion, Travis County Commissioner Brigid Shea, Travis County Commissioner Ann Howard, Travis County Commissioner Sally Hernandez, Travis County Sheriff Pio Renteria,Austin City Councillor ,District 3 Ann Kitchen,Austin City Councillor ,District 5 Leslie Pool,Austin City Councillor ,District 7 Alison Alter,Austin City Councillor ,District 10 Labor Unions
AFSCME, Local 1624 Austin Central Labor Council Austin EMS Association Austin Firefighter's Association Workers Defense Action Fund Organizations
Austin Board of Realtors Black Austin Democrats Central Austin Democrats Real Estate Council of Austin (RECA) A candidate forum was held on October 28 in theLyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library .[ 34]
2022 Austin mayoral general election[ 35] Candidate Votes % Celia Israel 121,862 39.99% Kirk Watson 106,508 34.95% Jennifer Virden 56,189 18.44% Phil Campero Brual 7,295 2.39% Anthony Bradshaw 7,102 2.33% Gary Spellman 5,781 1.90% Turnout %
^ "Results" . RetrievedFebruary 27, 2024 .^ Miznazi, Ashley (May 1, 2021)."Props D and E pass, changing how Austin elections work" .KXAN Austin . RetrievedNovember 21, 2021 . ^ Fechter, Joshua; Dey, Sneha (November 9, 2022)."Austin mayor's race heading to a runoff, Dallas county judge wins reelection" .The Texas Tribune . RetrievedNovember 29, 2022 . ^ Saldaña, Sean (August 24, 2022)."Virden positions herself as the 'common-sense' candidate for mayor" .Austin Monitor . ^a b Price, Asher (November 10, 2022)."Austin mayor's race results show a cleaved Austin" .Axios . RetrievedNovember 29, 2022 . ^ "One added to mayoral lineup as Littlefield tweets candidate facts" .^ Saldaña, Sean (October 25, 2022)."Anthony Bradshaw wants 'to see an Austin, Texas, that is successful' .Austin Monitor . RetrievedOctober 25, 2022 . ^ "Campaign Treasurer Appointment Forms - Master List | AustinTexas.gov" .www.austintexas.gov . RetrievedJune 3, 2022 .^ "Austin mayoral candidate unveils 6-part housing affordability plan" .KXAN Austin . June 2, 2022. RetrievedJune 14, 2022 .^ Barragán, James (January 11, 2022)."State Rep. Celia Israel announces run for Austin mayor" .The Texas Tribune Archived from the original on January 12, 2022. RetrievedJanuary 15, 2022 . ^ Saldaña, Sean (September 29, 2022)."Gary Spellman looks to disrupt Austin politics" .Austin Monitor . RetrievedOctober 25, 2022 . ^ Eubank, Britny (November 9, 2021)."Jennifer Virden is running for mayor of Austin in 2022" .kvue.com . ^ "Austin American-Statesman" .^ Mekelburg, Madlin (September 22, 2021)."State Rep. Celia Israel launches exploratory committee for Austin mayor in 2022" .Austin American-Statesman . ^ "Nix drops out of mayoral race, issues endorsement for Israel" .Austin Monitor . September 1, 2022. RetrievedSeptember 5, 2022 .^ Lindell, Chuck (November 4, 2021)."Greg Casar to leave Austin City Council, run for Congress" .Austin American-Statesman . Gannett.Archived from the original on November 5, 2021. ^a b c Freer, Emma (June 22, 2021)."Conservative District 10 challenger Jennifer Virden announces run for Austin mayor" .Austonia . ^ Guzmán, Andrea (November 8, 2021)."Conservative Jennifer Virden officially announces run for Austin Mayor" .Austonia . ^a b c d e f g h i j "Celia Israel seeks to be a progressive voice for Austin" .Austin Monitor . August 12, 2022.^a b c d e f g h i j k l "Israel and Watson vie for endorsements of influential Democrat groups" .Austin Monitor . September 16, 2022.^ "Blog" .^ "Unions Bet on Mayoral Candidate Kirk Watson" .The Austin Chronicle . September 9, 2022.^ "State and Local Candidates" .^ "Election Ticker: Southwest Council Races Illuminate Dual Political Divides" .^ "LGBTQ Victory Fund Endorses 80 More LGBTQ Candidates, Including Robert Zimmerman for U.S. Congress" .www.victoryfund.org .LGBTQ Victory Fund . RetrievedFebruary 25, 2022 .^ "Endorsed Candidates" .LPAC .^a b "Election Ticker: They Ban, We Plan Celia Israel and Kirk Watson answer urbanists, Israel lays out repro rights plan, and more" .The Austin Chronicle . September 23, 2022.^ "Celia Israel on Instagram: "🚨ENDORSEMENT ALERT🚨" .Instagram . RetrievedDecember 20, 2022 .^ "Endorsements" .^ "Endorsement: Israel offers best vision to lead as Austin mayor" .Austin-American Statesman . October 23, 2022. RetrievedNovember 30, 2022 .^ "Celia Israel on Instagram: "🚨📰 BREAKING: WE'VE BEEN ENDORSED BY @AustinChronicle!" .Instagram . RetrievedDecember 20, 2022 .^ "Hyde Parker Magazine Endorses Celia Israel for Mayor" .^ Autullo, Ryan (November 7, 2022)."Change of plan: Steve Adler not endorsing anybody in Austin mayoral race" .Austin-American Statesman . RetrievedNovember 30, 2022 . ^ "Austin Mayoral Forum" .Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum . RetrievedMarch 28, 2025 .^ "Results" . RetrievedDecember 2, 2022 .^ "Mayoral election in Austin, Texas (2022)" .Ballotpedia . RetrievedMay 29, 2024 .
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Runoff results by precinct.jpg)
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