Editor’s note: Find election results on KSAT.com starting Saturday at 7 p.m. when polls close. Get alerts sent to your phone by downloading the KSAT News app from Apple or Google app stores.
6:06 p.m. Saturday:
With less than an hour left before the polls close, there have been 9,906 voters so far in Bexar County, according to Bexar County Elections Department Administrator Jacque Callanen.
The elections department shared the update on social media Saturday.
Posted by Bexar County Elections Department on Saturday, June 5, 2021
There’s still some time to head to the polls, as they close at 7 p.m. To find a polling site near you, click here.
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While half of the San Antonio City Council races were decided on May 1, the other half had no clear winner and will be decided on Saturday in a runoff election.
The districts up for grabs in Saturday’s runoff are 1, 2, 3, 5 and 9. For those races, the top two vote-getting candidates from May 1 will face off to determine a final winner.
The eventual winners from Saturday’s runoff will join Mayor Ron Nirenberg, Adriana Rocha Garcia in District 4, Melissa Cabello Havrda in District 6, Ana Sandoval in District 7, Manny Palaez in District 8 and Clayton Perry in District 10, who all won their respective races in the May 1 election.
On Saturday, three of the races feature incumbents running for reelection while the two other races are to replace incumbents who reached their term limit.
If you plan to vote in the runoff election, you must be a resident of the City of San Antonio and be registered to vote in Bexar County.
- Find out which district you live in here.
- Click here to find out where you can vote on Election Day.
- Click here for a list of vote centers.
Here is a rundown of all the races on the ballot Saturday for San Antonio voters, including video previews for each race.
District 1: Roberto Treviño vs Mario Bravo
Treviño, the incumbent, kept a lead throughout the night in the May election, capturing 5,645 or 45% of the vote. Bravo had 4,225 or 36% of the vote.
Tackling homelessness has become the spotlight issue in the race.
Trevino said he is proud of the work his team has done addressing the issue. He said the homeless resource hub at his Dellview Field Office is helping many people by providing social services and meals to the homeless population.
But Bravo said more needs to be done. Bravo, project manager for the Environmental Defense Fund, said what Trevino is doing is not working and wants to bring professionals together to help the homeless population.
District 2: Jada Andrews-Sullivan vs Jalen McKee-Rodriguez
Out of 11 candidates who ran for the East Side city council seat, Andrews-Sullivan and McKee-Rodriguez came out on top when the dust settled.
McKee-Rodriguez captured 2,259 or 26% of the vote compared to Andrews-Sullivan, the incumbent, with 1,439 or nearly 17% of the vote.
The race heated up recently with endorsements and allegations of homophobia.
McKee-Rodriguez, who is gay, said recently on social media that some pastors on the East Side have told congregants a vote for him is a sin.
The pastors denied the accusations, saying that they are endorsing Andrews-Sullivan for her work as councilwoman.
McKee-Rodriguez, who was a former staff member for Andrews-Sullivan, said he resigned his staff position because of retaliation he faced after telling her about issues with another staff member’s treatment of him as an openly gay man, which Andrews-Sullivan denies.
District 3: Phyllis Viagran vs. Tomas Uresti
District 3 voters will have two familiar names to choose from for their next city council representative.
Viagran and Uresti emerged as the top two vote-getters from a crowded field of 12 candidates. Viagran scored the most votes in the May election with 2,260 or 22% of the vote. Uresti garnered 1,513 or 15% of the vote.
The winner will succeed Rebecca Viagran, a sibling of the runoff candidate, who reached her limit of four terms.
Uresti sees his experience in politics as separating him from his opponent, although she classifies the race as “a career politician versus someone that wants to serve the district.”
Uresti, a former Harlandale ISD school board trustee and state representative for District 118, points out that he didn’t get paid for being a school board member, and the pay for a state representative was only a few hundred dollars a month, plus a per diem.
“Being a career politician where you’re getting paid is one thing,” Uresti said. “When you’re a career politician serving the community, not getting paid, that’s a good thing to be, you know?”
You can view a preview of the race in the video below:
District 5: Teri Castillo vs. Rudy Lopez
Two new faces are vying to be the first new District 5 City Council member in eight years. The winner will succeed Shirley Gonzales, who is leaving office due to term limits.
Out of 11 candidates, Castillo secured the most votes in the May election, getting 2,073 or 31% of the vote compared to Lopez, who earned 991 or 15% of the vote.
Castillo, a substitute teacher and community organizer for housing affordability and health care, believes that she has the experience that will help her enact change.
She said the district’s subpar infrastructure is a big issue for her, as is better funding for programs that can benefit the district’s “established communities,” such as the Under 1 Roof program, which replaces qualified homeowners’ roofs.
Lopez is a former civilian employee with the San Antonio Police Department, but it’s his time with the Thompson Neighborhood Association - four years as vice-president and four years as president - that he thinks gives him the edge in experience.
He sees enhanced senior services as the biggest issue for the district, through after-school programs, better infrastructure, and public safety - through better response times and good community engagement - also made his list.
District 9: John Courage vs. Patrick Von Dohlen
John Courage and Patrick Von Dohlen are once again squaring off on Saturday in a runoff election for the District 9 council seat.
Courage, the two-term incumbent councilman, received 47.1% of the vote in the six-way May 1 election, while Von Dohlen received 35.7%. With neither of them taking a majority of the vote, the race went to a runoff.
The pair have competed for the seat two times already, in 2017 when Courage won his first term in a runoff against Marco Barros, and then in 2019 when Courage won outright.
More people cast ballots in the District 9 race than in any other council race on May 1, and both candidates expect turnout to be key again.
More information
If you need more information about the runoff candidates before you vote, we’ve compiled their answers to some of our KSAT viewers’ most frequently asked questions during the campaign here.
Click here to read the unedited responses we received from the candidates who responded to our questions in April.
Click here to see all of the election results from May 1 in Bexar County and the surrounding areas.