After winning a seat on the Austin ISD board of trustees, incoming trustee Lynn Boswell said she is excited to serve the district with a group of trustees who share the same mission of serving students and the future of the city. With months of campaigning for the November general election and subsequent Dec. 15 runoff now behind her, she said she is ready to use the next few weeks before being sworn onto the board to listen to the community.
“I'm ready to stop talking and start listening again,” she told Community Impact Newspaper on Dec. 16. “When you run it's so much talking and talking, and I think a lot of good public servants are listeners. I like listening more than I like talking, and I'm ready to listen and to reach out to campus leaders and to the community.”
While maintaining a high standard for education as the COVID-19 pandemic continues will be a top priority heading into 2021, for District 5 specifically, Boswell said addressing aging buildings in Central Austin and improving academic offerings at her schools will be an emphasis. She campaigned with a message to give the area more of a voice in districtwide conversations.
“Part of why I ran was really to make sure that District 5 was a big part of the conversation about equity in our district,” she said. “I don't think District 5 has been as actively engaged as a lot of people who live there want. [Education] is a conversation everyone in town needs to be a part of to have a sense of what's happening elsewhere. I think it's a better city for all of us when we get that right.”
Updated Dec. 15, 10:03 p.m.
Lynn Boswell will represent Austin ISD District 5 after winning the Dec. 15 runoff election against Jennifer Littlefield.
With Travis County reporting that all votes have been counted, Boswell received 4,030 total votes in the race, representing 54.83% of votes cast. Littlefield received 3,320 total votes, according to the county. Results are not official until canvased by AISD later this month.
Updated Dec. 15, 8:51 p.m.
Initial election day results show Lynn Boswell with 3,281 votes, or 54.64%, in the Austin ISD District 5 race against Jennifer Littlefield. Boswell leads by 557 votes as of 8:34 p.m. on Dec. 15. Election day votes are still being counted by Travis County. Original post: Dec. 15, 7:21 p.m.
With 5,739 early votes cast in the Austin ISD District 5 runoff, Lynn Boswell holds an early 471-vote lead over Jennifer Littlefield, according to results published by the Travis County Clerk’s office Dec. 15.
Boswell has received 3,105 of the votes counted so far, or 54.1%, compared to Littlefield’s 45.9% of early votes. Boswell also led the field in the Nov. 3 general election with 38.07% of votes compared to Littlefield's 36.54%. Both candidates earned a spot in the runoff ahead of Piper Stege Nelson.
No incumbent AISD board members ran for re-election in 2020. The winner of the District 5 race will replace outgoing trustee Amber Elenz. District 5 covers parts of Central Austin as well as a section of Southwest Austin.
Election Day results will be coming in throughout the night of Dec. 15 after polls closed throughout Travis County at 7 p.m. Results are not final until canvased.
