Even When It’s Heavy, We Win: Gina Ortiz Jones Becomes San Antonio’s Mayor
Gina Ortiz Jones made history in San Antonio, and the win is bigger than politics. The 44-year-old military veteran and former Under Secretary of the Air Force will now serve as the city’s first openly gay mayor, and only the third woman to hold the office. But her story—and what it represents for women, queer people, and people of color in Texas—goes much deeper.
Gina Ortiz Jones Breaks Barriers in the Seventh-Largest City in the U.S.
Ortiz Jones’s win is historic. According to The New York Times, she’s the first openly gay person elected mayor of San Antonio and only the second mayor of Asian heritage. Her mother immigrated from the Philippines in the 1970s and raised her and her sister as a single mom. Ortiz Jones told The Times she admires her mother’s work ethic, saying, “That was something that she always instilled in me.”
She was also deployed to Iraq under Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, making her win even more personal. As she said in a recent San Antonio Report debate, that experience taught her to lead by asking, “Who am I not hearing from? And why am I not hearing from them?”
What Gina Ortiz Jones Ran On—and Why It Resonated
Ortiz Jones campaigned on early childhood education, affordable housing, and job programs for unskilled workers. In a city where nearly 20% of people have lived below the poverty line since the 1980s, she said she wants to make sure San Antonio “is a city that is serving everybody.”
In an interview with KSAT, she doubled down on those priorities: investing in youth, prioritizing safety and essential services, and ensuring the community benefits from major public projects like Project Marvel. “Folks have to understand how they are also going to benefit from this generational investment,” she said.
The Election Got Ugly—and Ortiz Jones Still Won
Despite the money her opponent Rolando Pablos poured, Ortiz Jones pulled off a 54%-46% win, as reported by the San Antonio Current. Pablos had strong Republican backing, including from a PAC tied to Gov. Greg Abbott. His campaign dropped nearly $1 million in ads, including personal attacks that accused Ortiz Jones of “cheating” during a debate and trying to appear Latina by using her middle name, Ortiz.
Still, Ortiz Jones led a coalition of progressives, veterans, and LGBTQ+ voters. She had the backing of groups like the Texas Organizing Project and Vote Vets, as well as support from Democratic Party organizations, including Fields of Change and Emily’s List.
Why Gina Ortiz Jones’s Win Feels Personal for So Many
Ortiz Jones grew up on San Antonio’s Far West Side. She was raised by a single mom, used housing vouchers, and eventually earned an Air Force ROTC scholarship to Boston University. After serving in the military and then in the Biden administration, she came back home—and won.
She told Axios, “I was raised by a single mom, and I went on to serve our country. And I think that is very much a San Antonio story.”
That story resonated with voters in a city long defined by working-class pride and Latino culture. Her win comes at a time when many feel San Antonio—and Texas more broadly—are at a crossroads.
Gina Ortiz Jones’s Election Is a Marker of Where San Antonio Is Headed
While Pablos leaned into culture war messaging, Ortiz Jones stayed focused on values: compassion, equity, and listening to marginalized communities. “We reminded them that our city is about compassion and it’s about leading with everybody in mind,” she told supporters at her election night party.
Her win is also symbolic in a state where right-wing power is growing. Even though the race was officially nonpartisan, it became intensely partisan. The Texas Tribune called it a “bitterly partisan contest,” and said Republicans poured money into it to try and shift San Antonio rightward.
But San Antonio showed up. Turnout was 17%, higher than expected, according to Bexar County Elections. Ortiz Jones won both early and election day voting.
What’s Next for Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones?
Ortiz Jones will serve the city’s first four-year term under the new city charter. She steps into office with a $150 million budget deficit to address and big decisions to make about Project Marvel. As Ortinz Jones told KSAT, she wants the city to be smart and equitable in its public investments.
She also joins a City Council with five new members, many of them progressive. Councilmembers like Teri Castillo, Jalen McKee-Rodriguez, and Edward Mungia were among those who celebrated her win.
Jones told Axios that she has already started working and doesn’t plan to wait until the inauguration. “There’s no time to waste,” she said. “I’m not going to wait until I am actually in the seat.”
