Early Voting is underway. It started this last Tuesday and will run through next Tuesday, June 3rd. Election Day is June 7th.
Let’s get out and vote. Turnout was abysmally low for the May 3 Election (little more than 9% of registered voters in San Antonio voted). So, let’s help to change that.
In the first round of voting, I supported Beto Altamirano (which I wrote about here). In my perfect world, we’d have a runoff with two distinctly “local” campaigns. We’d choose from Beto and one of our councilmembers, perhaps the District 4 Councilwoman of the last six years, Adriana Rocha Garcia.
Alas, this isn’t that world.
The mechanics of the mayoral race should be scrutinized. Anyone who pays $100 can get their name on the ballot, which is the core reason we ended up with 27 candidates to choose from. On top of that, both Early Voting and Election Day ran through Fiesta! My family and I were at the King William Fair on the final voting day. Not a recipe for strong turnout.
The councilmembers should’ve been wiser to check some egos and discern which candidate among them had the greatest shot to make the runoff (the results showed that it was Rocha Garcia who pulled 4th in the vote tally).
Instead, many of them ran what seemed like half-hearted campaigns, complained about outside money and influence, and siphoned off critical outcome-altering votes.
Anyhow, that’s enough litigating the past. We are now deciding between the two runoff candidates, Gina Ortiz Jones and Rolando Pablos.
After following the race closely, meeting both candidates, and interviewing them on bigcitysmalltown, I will be voting for Gina Ortiz Jones. I hope my analysis offers insight into your own voting decision, whichever way you decide to go.
I thought hard about producing an analysis like this, but in the end, I decided this moment was too important to pass up. For all of us here in San Antonio, it’s important to make our voices heard. Far too many of us are not.
I’m voting for Gina Ortiz Jones because I believe she’s the best candidate between the two. Here’s why:
Immigrant Roots, Troubling Rhetoric
Rolando Pablos’ campaign has leaned heavily on his background as an immigrant (as the Express-News reported yesterday). Pablos, who immigrated from Sonora, Mexico at age 9, has highlighted his Mexican heritage, Spanish fluency, and deep cross-border relationships as key assets for fostering stronger economic ties with our neighbors to the south.
However, I find it hard to reconcile Pablos’ personal story with his rhetoric. And, at best, his deeply uninformed understanding of the current realities of immigration.
I was struck by Pablos’ stance on immigration during the San Antonio Report debate on May 19. At one point, he declared, ‘Make no mistake about it—we have to make sure that we get rid of criminal aliens immediately.’ He doubled down moments later: ‘I am all for identifying criminal aliens and deporting them immediately…’
Then, perhaps in an attempt to soften his stance, Pablos added: “We have to be able to treat our immigrants with dignity, but also remember that we have to take care of San Antonians first.”
Then, in a follow-up interview during the runoff on bigcitysmalltown, Pablos falsely claimed that only individuals with criminal records are being targeted for deportation. That’s simply not true. One of the most publicized cases involved 238 Venezuelan migrants who were flown from Texas to a maximum-security prison in El Salvador. CBS News later reported that 75% of them—179 men—had no criminal records to be found. And that’s just one example.
Immigration isn’t abstract in San Antonio. It’s not a distant policy debate. Immigrants are our neighbors, coworkers, and classmates. They raise families here. They contribute to our economy, our culture, and our civic life. There’s no “they” here at all. Immigrants are San Antonio. But, under Pablos’ logic, people who’ve lived here for decades, who send their kids to our schools, who work in our hospitals and businesses—they don’t count as “San Antonians?”
Let’s be real: Gina Ortiz Jones has taken heat—particularly from Pablos—for using her middle name, Ortiz, in her political identity. She didn’t always use it professionally, and sure, there may be some political calculation there.
Meanwhile, Pablos has leaned heavily on his own immigrant story while his campaign has sent out messages accusing Gina of adding “Ortiz to your name … to make us think you’re one of us.” That kind of language is more than just a political jab—it’s exclusionary.
It sends the message that some people belong in San Antonio, and others don’t.
So if we’re talking about opportunism, let’s be fair about it. Rolando Pablos is using his background to win votes—while endorsing dehumanizing rhetoric and dangerous policies that hurt the very communities he claims to be part of.
Some argue: What can a mayor really do about immigration?
Technically? Not much. But symbolically? A great deal. Just as the mayor helps shape San Antonio’s economic and civic priorities, they also shape its moral voice. Whether you say, “You aren’t welcome here” or “No eres bienvenido aquí”—the message is the same.
And that’s not what defines the San Antonio I’ve come to know and admire.
Rolando Won’t Separate Himself from State and National GOP Leadership—And It Matters
This may be a nonpartisan race on paper, but let’s be honest: both candidates are backed by significant party interests from outside San Antonio.
Rolando Pablos was appointed Texas Secretary of State by Republican Governor Greg Abbott in 2017 and served nearly two years in that role. Gina Ortiz Jones, meanwhile, has twice run for Congress as a Democrat and served as the Under Secretary of the Air Force in the Biden administration from 2021 to 2023.
I don’t love the outside political influence behind either campaign. But when I consider where real damage could be done to our city’s future, I have to look closely at the broader agendas these candidates are aligned with—and who’s willing to push back when it counts.
San Antonio is one of the fastest-growing cities in the country (right now!). We will add more than a million new residents by 2030. That means our focus can’t only be chasing the next corporate relocation—we should be preparing for the future already on our doorstep.
That preparation requires serious attention to infrastructure, public transportation, public education, housing, food, water, and energy systems. It means building a San Antonio that remains vibrant, distinctive, and livable for everyone, not just more marketable.
When we invest in making this city work better for the people who live here now, the right kinds of businesses will follow.
Growth is happening, and we should ensure that the people who call San Antonio home today can afford to live here tomorrow. It’s about growing the right way. San Antonio’s way.
We risk losing what makes this city special if we try to copy and paste economic models from other Texas metros—like Austin, where culture has increasingly been shaped by what can be bought, sold, and branded.
That path leads to a city where longtime residents are priced out and disconnected, no longer able to afford, or even recognize, the place they helped build. That’s not the future I want for San Antonio.
And yet, many of the forces working against that future, against our ability to plan wisely, invest locally, and protect what makes this city ours, are tied directly to Republican state and national policies:
- Food insecurity: According to CEO Eric Cooper, a proposed $300 billion cut to SNAP benefits in the U.S. House could be “devastating” for the San Antonio Food Bank, which is taking food off the tables of San Antonio families.
- Medical talent recruitment: As Larry Schlesinger of Texas Biomedical Research Institute told us on bigcitysmalltown, top recruits increasingly ask what living in a state without reproductive rights is like.
- Public education: The state’s new school voucher program redirects billions toward private schools, siphoning funding away from San Antonio’s public school students.
- Cybersecurity and business tourism: A major cybersecurity conference pulled out of San Antonio, citing the “challenging and unpredictable U.S. policy climate.” This happened even as our Republican governor tries to establish a Cyber Command here.
- Energy resilience: Despite $64 billion in announced investments in renewables, Texas lawmakers are trying to curtail solar and wind development in favor of new natural gas plants—just years after the deadly grid failures during Winter Storm Uri.
- Public finance: The Texas Legislature is now trying to make it harder for cities like San Antonio to issue bonds—the very tool we use to fund vital infrastructure. House Bill 2736 would require a two-thirds voter threshold and restrict bond elections to November ballots. If passed, this could kneecap the city’s ability to fund street repairs, greenways, affordable housing, and even workforce development—investments that voters have overwhelmingly supported in past elections
We need a mayor who can do more than manage growth. We need someone who will defend San Antonio’s right to shape its own future.
That means serving as a principled counterweight when state or federal policies threaten our city’s well-being, whether in housing, public education, energy, or basic dignity for our communities.
Rolando Pablos has said he’s closely aligned with Governor Greg Abbott. He’s pitched that connection as a strength. But in this political climate, it’s a liability. We’ve already seen how deeply Austin and Washington can undermine San Antonio’s autonomy and resilience.
Gina Ortiz Jones has made it clear: she’s willing to push back. That matters not just symbolically, but practically. We need a mayor who will stand with San Antonians when it counts.
So, Why Gina?
I’ll be honest—Gina Ortiz Jones wasn’t my first choice. I endorsed Beto Altamirano in the first round.
But in a runoff against Rolando Pablos, the choice is clear to me.
Gina isn’t a perfect candidate. I still have questions about her political instincts and leadership style. But what I saw in the debate and during our interview on bigcitysmalltown was someone who came prepared, with policy knowledge, clarity, and a commitment to the details. Rolando, by comparison, leaned heavily on broad slogans about “economic development,” with less substance behind them.
And it’s not just my impression. Yes, she’s alienated herself from some key endorsements—but she’s also earned the backing of leaders with meaningful track records in San Antonio and beyond: former Mayor Phil Hardberger, Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar, Texas U.S. House Representative Greg Casar, and District 2 Councilmember Jalen McKee-Rodriguez, among many others.
Endorsements aren’t everything, but they reflect a level of confidence in Gina’s ability to meet this moment.
I’m voting for Gina because I believe she’ll focus on people, not just external economic interests. I believe she’ll bring a broader perspective to the job that considers economic development through the lens of climate resilience, public health, and affordable housing for San Antonians.
In a city as complex and diverse as ours, I believe she’ll be more likely to adapt and represent all of San Antonio.
In the event of a Pablos win, I’d be glad to be proven wrong. But I remain concerned, particularly by his use of outdated, dehumanizing language when referring to San Antonio’s immigrant communities. A 2023 report found that more than 160,000 non-citizens in San Antonio are at risk of deportation. These aren’t abstract numbers—they represent neighbors, families, and essential workers who help power this city. Language matters, especially when it risks legitimizing policies that put those people in danger.
I’m also uneasy about the version of economic development Pablos seems to champion. A vision that feels more focused on attracting outside capital than investing in our local culture and community.
As we’ve seen with our neighbors 70 miles to the north, cultural value can quickly be commodified and extracted.
When that happens, a city can lose its soul and its residents’ ability to afford or enjoy the place they helped build. We can’t afford to let that happen in San Antonio.
That’s enough for me, especially when the alternative is someone whose rhetoric and affiliations, I believe, gravely challenge not just the city’s future, but its character.
I’m casting my vote for Gina Ortiz Jones. I hope you will too.
🗳️ Early voting runs through Monday, June 3. Election Day is Saturday, June 7. Let’s make it count.