Austin Mayor Pro Tem Sheryl Cole will kick off her campaign for mayor May 31.[/caption]

Austin Mayor Pro Tem Sheryl Cole will add her name to the growing list of mayoral candidates during a May 31 campaign kickoff event.

"On Saturday, there will be an announcement about a mayor who wants to lift up the voices of all Austinites," said Cole, a three-term councilwoman who in 2006 became the first African-American woman elected to Austin City Council.

Cole spent much of May touring Austin's newly created 10 council districts in anticipation of her May 31 announcement, which will take place at a private residence—similar to her pre-announcement tour—across from Lee Elementary School where she first got involved politically with the PTA. Affordability, transportation and water resources were the three big issues repeatedly brought up by residents throughout her tour, Cole said.

"It was an incredibly enlightening experience, " she said. "I learned that people all across Austin want the city to be more responsive to their needs, and there's not as much of a divide in Austin among its citizens as much as it is a divide between the citizens and city hall."

Cole said she welcomes the opportunity to help lead Austin into a new generation of representation with the revamped 10-1 council system in which 10 council members are elected to represent their respective geographical regions while the mayor is elected at-large.

"[Residents] are challenged by the new system but overwhelmingly look forward to the change," Cole said. "I think the 10-1 system will provide more people a voice and a seat at the table, so it's a step in the right direction."

Cole also touts her experience winning elections by large margins, most recently in 2012 when she gained more than two-thirds of the vote.

"We have to look at which candidates will actually lead the city in bringing it together and building a new community," she said.

Her campaign kickoff event will take place at 2 p.m. May 31 at 802 Harris Ave., the home of Cole supporters Hugh and Sandi Bender. The event is open to the public.