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Watson beat his opponent, Celia Israel, by fewer than 1,000 votes.
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Polls have closed in the races for mayor and three seats on the Austin City Council. Here are the results.
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Austin is holding runoff elections for mayor and City Council. Why don't people vote in these races?In 2014, the last time Austin had a runoff election for mayor, just 15% of voters participated.
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No single candidate in the races for mayor and three seats on the City Council garnered a majority of votes in November, so they were sent to a runoff election. Polls close at 7 p.m.
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Last year, voters passed a proposition saying they want ranked-choice voting in local elections — which would make runoff elections unnecessary. The city hasn't implemented this form of voting, though, because it says state law won't allow it.
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The polls have closed for the Nov. 8 election, but some races still won't be decided for another month. Austin's mayoral race and three City Council races are heading to a runoff.
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More than half of Austin voters could not agree on one candidate, so voters will return to the polls next month to determine the winner.
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Last year, two-thirds of voters supported Proposition D, which moves the city’s mayoral elections to the same year as presidential elections.
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The mayor elected in this cycle will serve a two-year term, as opposed to four years. A ballot measure passed in May 2021 moved Austin's mayoral race to align with presidential elections in an effort to increase voter turnout.
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Key races on the ballot include the governor's race between Greg Abbott and Beto O'Rourke, and a matchup between incumbent Attorney General Ken Paxton and Rochelle Garza. If you live in Austin, you'll also be voting for mayor.