Updated 10:30 p.m. March 5
Incumbent José Garza was nominated for a second term for Travis County district attorney with over 66% of the votes.
“Today we scored a major victory for progressive values and for criminal justice reform,” Garza said in a statement. “We are a diverse, strong, brave coalition of working people, people of color, young people, women and progressives who show up and turn out. We don’t back down when things get rough.”
Posted 7:30 p.m. March 5
Early results show incumbent José Garza is leading the race for Travis County district attorney.
Garza received 32,006 votes, or 64.68%, and his opponent Jeremy Sylestine received 17,476 votes, or 35.32%.
The context
The winner will face off with Republican Daniel Betts in the November general election. However, the winner of this election is likely to assume the role of district attorney as Travis County has historically voted for Democrats.
The details
Garza was elected Travis County DA in 2020, succeeding Democrat Margaret Moore. In his tenure, Garza has focused on reducing gun violence and providing justice for sexual assault survivors. He increased the size of the Victim Services Division and helped resolve a pair of lawsuits that revealed the Austin Police Department mishandled rape test kits and often closed cases without making any arrests.
Sylestine, a defense attorney and former prosecutor in the DA’s office, ran a campaign that promised to restore trust in the DA’s office by resolving a backlog of unindicted cases and prosecuting domestic violence and child abuse cases.
All results are unofficial until canvassed.
