San Antonio's reddest district has been represented by a Democrat for eight years, but this year's open seat presents an opportunity for conservatives.
Two candidates who previously ran losing Democrat ic and Republican campaigns for public office are now fighting for a chance to represent San Antonio ’s most conservative district. Angela “Angi” Taylor Aramburu, 49, was the Democrat ic candidate for Texas House District 122 in 2022’s general election.
Misty Spears, 44, was the Republican candidate for Bexar County District Clerk in the November 2022 election. Another contender in the May 3 election, Daniel Mezza, worked as Republican Sen. John Cornyn’s regional director for 12 years and served two years in the same role for U.S. Rep. Will Hurd, R-Helotes. They’re three of seven candidates running to replace Councilman John Courage, who has reached the end of his eight-year term limit and is currently campaigning for mayor. All three say infrastructure, public safety and economic development are among their top priorities. District 9 begins near Loop 410 and stretches beyond Loop 1604. Its residents make far more than the average San Antonian, with per capita income of $47,275 compared to the city’s $28,579 as of 2021, according to a report by the now defunct nonprofit SA2020. Residents are also more educated, with 52% of District 9 residents having earned a bachelor’s or graduate degree compared to the approximately 27% of San Antonians who obtained that level of higher education. The district includes the San Antonio International Airport, which is building a $1.7 billion Terminal C, the centerpiece of long-term expansion plan. It's also home to Phil Hardberger Park, known for its $23 million land bridge, and the megachurch Cornerstone Church. After eight years in office, Courage said most of the calls his team has fielded were a mix of public safety concerns — such as vehicle break-ins or strangers walking through neighborhoods — and people asking about the status of street and sidewalk projects. Courage said the district is fortunate to have few calls of people worried about violent crime. “Some of their concerns are quality of life issues, as opposed to threats to life or safety issues that maybe some other people see,” Courage said. Before Courage’s upset victory in 2017 — his main opponent, tourism promoter Marco Barros, was favored to win the seat — District 9 was represented by a line of conservatives, including Joe Krier, who endorsed Barros, Elisa Chan, Kevin Wolff, Carroll W. Schubert and Tim Bannwolf. And before 2017, Courage had campaigned as a Democrat for local, state and federal offices. He was endorsed in his first District 7 race by Our Revolution, a progressive political organization launched by U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders. City Council is a nonpartisan body, but candidates' party affiliation is usually known and considered by voters. Though the North Side district is still the reddest among the city’s 10, a San Antonio Express-News analysis found that the North Side voters have been warming up — ever so slightly — to left-of-center candidates over the past decade. One example: About 40% of District 9 voters cast ballots for Democrat Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election. Last year, 48% voted for Democrat Kamala Harris, an Express-News analysis found. { '__type': 'devHubFreeformEmbed', '__id': 'Datawrapper', '__fallbackImage': 'https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/su9Sr/mobile.png', '__data': { 'datawrapper_id': 'su9Sr' } } Taylor Aramburu, backed by Courage, Spears and Mezza have raised and spent the most out of all the contenders. Taylor Aramburu owns a fitness company. Spears works for Bexar County Precinct 3 Commissioner Grant Moody, the lone Republican on Commissioners Court. Mezza, 55, owns Puro Nitro Coffee, a canned beverage that is sold in more than 300 HEB locations across Texas. Chris Cantu, a political strategist who has run mayoral, state and federal campaigns, thinks Taylor Aramburu and Spears are the most likely to face off in a June runoff — and that Spears may come out on top. The candidates have been running nonpartisan campaigns so far, but Cantu said that in a runoff Spears will likely tap into her conservative roots and do more to tout her Republican endorsements to win votes in the red district. North Side districts tend to see more conservative voters turning out in runoffs, Cantu said, which could give Spears a needed boost. { '__type': 'devHubFreeformEmbed', '__id': 'Datawrapper', '__fallbackImage': 'https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/uk8pi/mobile.png', '__data': { 'datawrapper_id': 'uk8pi' } } “It’s really going to be about hustle and communicating their endorsements,” said political consultant James Aldrete. “Because endorsements are a cue in a low-information race that gives someone a sense of who they are in a quick way versus having to tell your whole bio and having to talk about your issues.” Overlapping priorities Spears, who grew up on the North Side, has worked for the county for two years but spent most of her career as an accountant and a paralegal. Spears said working in constituent services inspired her to run in the district she was raised in. “I feel like I have a great pulse for this district,” she said. “I feel close to the community, and I’ve been listening to concerns this whole time. I feel prepared and have a good understanding of what District 9 wants for the future.” READ MORE: Councilman Courage’s hiring raises questions about election fairness Commissioner Moody, her boss and campaign treasurer, is one of several Republicans who have endorsed Spears. District 10 Councilman Marc Whyte, former councilwoman Chan and state Representatives Marc LaHood and Marc Dorazio have also backed her. Taylor Aramburu sits on the Mayor’s Fitness Council, an initiative to promote physical activity and healthy eating, and the board of Community Housing Resource Partners, a local nonprofit that partners with developers to increase affordable housing options. Before moving to San Antonio 10 years ago, Taylor Aramburu worked in public relations in Indianapolis and managed off-Broadway theaters in New York City. Courage, former Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff and the North East Bexar County Democrats are in Taylor Aramburu’s corner. Taylor Aramburu describes herself as socially liberal with fiscal conservative leanings. “I won’t ever advocate for free-wheeling spending,” she said. “I think it needs to be justified, data based and necessary, especially when you’re talking about tax dollars.” READ MORE: Part of ethics complaint against Councilwoman Sukh Kaur goes to review board Mezza decided to return to politics because he was frustrated with rising CPS Energy rates and what he sees as a lack of support for local businesses. “I just want to change the status quo,” Mezza said. “I think we have so much potential to do something.” All three candidates are calling for a new fire station and police substation because they believe the district’s growth has outpaced the development of public safety infrastructure, and they want San Antonio to continue hiring more police officers. District 9 includes one of the city’s seven police substations. It’s on Jones Maltsberger Road, near the southernmost part of the district. Taylor Aramburu said a fire station is needed north of 1604, where some residents paying city taxes often have to rely on Bexar County fire service. “That’s something we need to look at and remedy soon, just in all fairness to our residents who are paying those city taxes, and to decrease response times in those areas,” she said. The three want to work to support local businesses and attract new ones, though Mezza said he wants to focus on building up San Antonio-based headquarters rather than pulling in outsiders. He said the city should speed up its permitting process so business owners can open their doors sooner and start generating sales tax revenue. “You’ve got to make it easier for people to do business in San Antonio,” he said. “If you start looking at that, revenue is going to start pouring in.” But they diverge on some topics. Taylor Aramburu fully supports the city’s equity-based approach to budgeting, which allows historically neglected areas of the city to sometimes get more dollars for roadway, housing and construction projects than more affluent parts of San Antonio, including District 9. She said at a recent San Antonio Report candidate forum that it’s important to “lift up” all parts of town so the city as a whole can benefit from lower crime and poverty rates. “District 9 certainly has needs,” she said. “We have needs we need to take care of and we need our fair share of the budget. That doesn’t necessarily mean our fair share is equal to the needs in other parts of the city.” Mezza and Spears staunchly oppose the practice. “It’s important we maintain the things that we have,” Spears said at the forum, adding that the city should “get back to basics” and stay out of social issues to save money. Other contenders Emily Joy Garza, 40, owns Dollistic, a permanent make-up clinic, and is an animal welfare activist. She has a background in retail, spa and hotel management. Celeste Tidwell, 57, was a Democratic Party precinct chair from 2008 through 2016. She is a former drama teacher. She unsuccessfully ran for the District 10 seat in 2015 and 2017. April Chang, 44, is a board member for the Mitchell Chang Foundation, which built the inclusive pirate-themed playground Mitchell’s Landing in honor of her son who drowned when he was 3-years-old. She has pushed for legislative changes for swim school safety standards. Chang was the executive director until she recently stepped back to focus on her campaign. Prior to the tragedy, Chang had a background in medical sales. Tristen Hoffman, 18, is training to become a pilot. He is a high school senior. Early voting for the May 3 election begins Tuesday. Data reporter Leila Darwiche contributed to this report.
Democrat Community Housing Resource Partners Our Revolution City Council Mitchell Chang Foundation Fitness Council North East Bexar County Bexar County Precinct 3 San Antonio Express-News Express-News HEB CPS Energy Misty Spears Angela ``Angi'' Taylor Aramburu Daniel Mezza John Courage San Antonio Will Hurd Marco Barros Grant Moody John Cornyn Republican Donald Trump Chris Cantu Joe Krier Tristen Hoffman Chang Nelson Wolff Bernie Sanders James Aldrete Marc Lahood Marc Whyte Leila Darwiche Celeste Tidwell Elisa Chan Chan Sukh Kaur Kevin Wolff Hillary Clinton Tim Bannwolf Carroll W. Schubert Kamala Harris Chang Marc Dorazio Emily Joy Garza District 9 Phil Hardberger Park Texas House District 122 San Antonio International Airport Cornerstone Church North Side Loop 1604 Loop 410 Helotes Bexar County U.S. District 7 Barros New York City District 10 Broadway Indianapolis Playground Mitchell's Landing Jones Maltsberger Road Councilman Courage Terminal C Puro Nitro Coffee SA2020 Dollistic San Antonio Report
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