Voters line up to cast their ballots at a San Antonio College polling place. Credit: Sanford Nowlin

Early voting in San Antonio’s June 7 runoff elections got underway Tuesday.

Polls in the runoff, which include the city’s first open mayor’s race since 2009, and City Council runoffs in Districts 1, 6, 8 and 9, will be open 8 a.m.-6 p.m., May 27-June 3. Polls will reopen 7 a.m.-7 p.m. on Election Day.

A full list of polling locations is available on the Bexar County Election Department’s website.

Even those who didn’t vote in the May 3 municipal election, can still vote in the runoff. Residents can check with the Bexar County elections department for their registration status.

Here’s a full breakdown of who’s running for what and why.

Mayor’s Race

One-time Texas Secretary of State Rolando Pablos, a Republican appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott, and Gina Ortiz Jones, former Under Secretary of the U.S. Air Force, are both vying to replace the term-limited Mayor Ron Nirenberg.

Pablos has positioned himself as a pro-police fiscal conservative who wants to tackle San Antonio’s generational poverty problem by sparking economic development. Meanwhile, Jones has marketed herself as someone who will stand against Gov. Greg Abbott and the Trump administration. She’s also advocated for expanded access to pre-K and more government transparency.

Both will have to tackle complicated issues, including the pricy and controversial Project Marvel downtown development and the city’s looming $150 billion budget deficit.

District 1

Incumbent Sukh Kaur, an education consultant, is fighting to keep her seat on the dais under a challenge from former Greater Harmony Hills Neighborhood Association president Patty Gibbons. Kaur fell just short of winning the seat outright, securing 49% of the vote in a crowded May 3 primary.

Kaur has voted in favor of big-tickets projects such as the San Antonio Missions baseball stadium project, but not without hearing out low-income residents’ concerns about affordable housing. Although she’s largely popular in the district, she’s faced some criticism about ongoing construction projects in the downtown district.

Meanwhile, Gibbons, a conservative representing a district on the northern end of the district, is running a campaign focused on improving constituent services, providing additional small-business support and enhancing crime-prevention efforts.

District 6

In what may be the most competitive race this election cycle, progressive organizer Ric Galvan, a former staffer for District 5 Councilwoman Teri Castillo, is seeking to defeat labor organizer and small-business owner Kelly Ann Gonzalez.

Both candidates’ campaigns advocate for similar issues, including improving public education, community health, and services for military veterans. However, Gonzalez is backed by termed-out District 6 Councilwoman Melissa Cabello Havrda.

District 8

Primarily seen by analysts as a partisan race, the runoff to replace the termed-out Councilman Manny Pelaez features Ivalis Meza Gonzalez, who served as Mayor Ron Nirenberg’s chief of staff, and conservative attorney and Ethics Review Board member Paula McGee.

A progressive candidate, Gonzalez is running on a platform of funding public safety, supporting the district’s large senior population and improving infrastructure.

Meanwhile, McGee advocates for improved responses to homelessness, increased transparency and enhanced constituent services. Homelessness and panhandling have been a reoccurring policy concern in the North Side district.

District 9

The race to represent District 9 on council also is shaping up to be a partisan contest, this one between conservative Misty Spears and progressive Angi Taylor Aramburu.

Aramburu previously worked as an arts-management consultant and business owner, having also run for the Texas House 122 seat as a Democrat. Termed-out incumbent John Courage endorses her.

Spears currently serves as director of constituent services for Prescient 3 Bexar County Commissioner Grant Moody, the sole conservative voice on commissioner’s court.

Despite running on a fiscally conservative platform, Spears’ campaign has been mired in controversy since press reports that she and her husband faced several federal tax liens between 2009 and 2013. The Woods of Enicino Park Homeowners Association also filed lien against the couple  in 2014, records show.

Although these liens have been settled, Spears is still fighting a nearly $9,000 Discover card bill, according to the San Antonio Report.

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This article appears in May 14-27, 2025.

Michael Karlis is a multimedia journalist at the San Antonio Current, whose coverage in print and on social media focuses on local and state politics. He is a graduate of American University in Washington,...