‘Get things done’: Austin Mayor Kirk Watson officially announces run for reelection

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin Mayor Kirk Watson is officially running for reelection, he announced Wednesday. The mayor had previously told KXAN that was his intent.

“It was always the plan to run for reelection. It’s just that I also wanted to get some things done that needed to be done — in my view — to keep up our momentum at city hall,” Watson said in an interview with KXAN prior to the announcement. One of those things, finding a permanent city manager. “We landed that plane and taxied it to the gate last week and so it’s now time to move on to other things.”

Former Austin City Council Member Kathie Tovo, Carmen Llanes Pulido and Doug Greco have also announced their intent to run.

Watson served as mayor from 1997-2001 and took office again in early 2023. The mayor will serve two years this term, instead of four, because Austin voted to have its election run concurrent to the presidential one.

“We’ve made such great strides, but I want a full term of four years,” Watson said. “When I came in, I think there was a general feeling and understanding that city hall wasn’t taking care of people’s basic needs in the city, and I think now the general understanding is that it’s on track and it’s doing those kinds of things.”

What to expect from the campaign

Much like Watson’s previous campaign, the mayor spoke about getting things done quickly and getting “back to basics.”

“We are a rapidly, rapidly growing city with challenges that come from how rapidly it’s happening, so we don’t have time to mess around with it. We need to be willing to move, we need to be thoughtful, we need to be empathetic, but we can’t be overly patient to the point of a fault,” Watson said.

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Watson pointed to his efforts to make Austin more affordable, and keep Austinites in our city, including through land development code changes (and how those are communicated), the recent creation of the Austin Infrastructure Academy and working through delays in the development site process.

“We’ve done more in the past 15 months than had been done in the previous decade to make Austin the kind of place where people can continue to afford to be here and to be a part of this community,” Watson said.

Transportation is also likely to be a focal point of mayoral candidates’ campaigns. Watson said Project Connect, and housing opportunities surrounding the future line, will be a focus for him too.

“We need to be focused on that like a laser, and I have been. People are right, they voted for this. This was a voter-approved situation and we need to make sure it’s there,” he said.

Police already a focal topic

Watson addressed comments made by opponent Kathie Tovo earlier in the week — saying he didn’t think it was “a very good strategy to run for mayor by attacking your opponent’s endorsers, particularly when they’re thoughtful elected officials.”

Tovo’s post pointed to a couple public safety topics, including Austin’s now-ended partnership with the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS).

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“I’m astonished to read in a local blog that most of the City Council may endorse Kirk Watson. I served with several of these Council Members, and I know they don’t support the racial profiling of communities of color, so why would they endorse the person who invited DPS into this community, ushering in a program that led to those (predictable) results?” she posted.

Watson responded, in-part:

“One of the key things that we need to do in this community is we need to fill the vacancies that we have in APD. And a big part of that is because of decisions that had been made before I got there, including by the person I think is making that attack, to essentially defund the police and stop cadet classes.”

Watson also pointed to work done during his term to bring staffing levels up at the 911 call center, his and council’s vote on police pay and recruitment incentives, and the Austin Police Association re-entering APD contract negotiations.

Other candidates running for Austin mayor

Former Austin City Council Member Kathie Tovo officially announced her intent to run for mayor in mid-January, KXAN previously reported.

Tovo served as an Austin City Council member from 2011 to 2023, first as an at-large member and later for District 9.

“I’m still committed to these same progressive values: equity, honest government and standing up for women, workers, immigrants and our LGBTQIA+ community. You can also count on me to fight against bad plans like the I-35 expansion and the State’s attacks on our local freedoms,” she said.

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Carmen Llanes Pulido also announced her intentions to run for Austin mayor in January.

According to a release from her campaign, Llanes Pulido “has been a leading voice” in underserved Austin communities working with GAVA (Go! Austin/¡Vamos! Austin) and as a member of the planning commission.

Llanes Pulido is the executive director for GAVA. She previously ran for the Austin City Council District 4 seat.

“Many Austinites from diverse backgrounds have asked me to step up and run for office,” Llanes Pulido said in the release. “There is a real craving for honest representation and common-sense solutions. People see a lack of transparency and a genuine problem with the influence that wealthy special interests wield. We need leadership that listens to the needs of people from all ends of the economic spectrum.”

On Feb. 5, Doug Greco announced he was running for the position.

According to a release, Greco served as the lead organizer and executive director for Central Texas Interfaith for 12 years and stepped down just prior to his announcement.

In his announcement, Greco pointed to his work on LGBTQ rights under State Rep. Gina Hinojosa and as director of programs at Equity California. Greco is also openly gay, his release said.

“I’m running for Mayor because Austin needs a leader who will stand up for working people and against big money at City Hall and unchecked corporate power in politics overall. Despite Austin’s wealth and unprecedented growth, working people continue to be pushed out of the city and out of the middle class,” said Greco.

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