Ellis led the race as soon as early voting totals were released by the Hays County and Travis County Clerk’s offices Nov. 8.
"We've really come together as a community, and we are working hard for them," Ellis said after the election was called.
Ellis assumed office Jan. 6, 2019, and her term will end Jan. 6, 2023, after which she will start her second four-year term. In her first term, Ellis worked on doubling the city’s homestead exemption to 20%, increasing the minimum wage for city workers, sponsoring the city’s safe gun storage campaign, authoring the $460 million bond to build new trails and bike lanes, and authoring the ordinance to put baby changing tables in men’s restrooms.
"In the second term I'd like to continue the work we are doing on road safety—slow down and cut through traffic, which is a big problem in District 8—we are going to continue delivering on road safety improvements," Ellis said. "We also need to be cutting down on the timeline that people are dealing with getting through the permitting process with the city."
There were four candidates running for the seat, and Ellis received 57.77% or 19,590 votes. Her main challenger, Richard Smith, received 28.43%, or 10,055 votes. Trailing behind were Kimberley Hawkins, who received 9.32% or 3,298 votes, and Antonio Ross received 4.48%, or 1,582 votes.
There were 35,370 votes counted in Travis and Hays counties for the race.
Of the four candidates who filed to run for District 8, only Ellis and Smith posted significant fundraising totals leading up to the final month of the campaign. Ellis had contributions of more than $129,000 with total spending of $87,000. Smith had $55,000 in contributions with less than $70,000 in spending.
Results are unofficial until canvassed. Visit communityimpact.com/voter-guide to see results from all local elections in your community.
