Elections are a powerful thing. It might sound cliche, but they really are one of the best ways to make your voice be heard and create a positive impact on this world.
But they also can be really confusing! With so many names on the ballot and the craziness that comes with a 24-hour news cycle, it can be hard to figure out what you’re even supposed to pay attention to.
At The Austin Common, we’re dedicated to actually explaining the news and giving you the tools you need to cast an informed ballot by Election Day, with a special focus on local elections. After all, these are the races that can have the biggest impact on your everyday life… and they’re often the ones that get ignored.
Keep an eye on this page, because as we get closer to the next election, we’ll be posting all our easy-to-read election guides right here! Want to make sure you don’t miss anything? Be sure to follow us on Instagram (@The_Austin_Common) and/or subscribe to our weekly email newsletter.
Mark your calendars! The next election is on November 5th.
Important dates:
Early voting starts on October 21st and lasts through November 1st
The last date to register to vote for this election is October 7th
What will be on the ballot? We all know there’s a big presidential race on the ballot this year, but here at The Austin Common, we’ll be focusing on the local races that matter most to our community. They include…
5 City Council seats (Districts 2, 4, 6, 7 and 10). You can figure out which Council district you live in here.
Mayor of Austin (even though Mayor Kirk Watson was just elected two years ago, we’re having another mayoral election this year, to get our city’s mayoral elections on the same timeline as presidential elections)
And many more!
The primary elections for president (and a few other local races) were held in Texas in March 2024.
The Austin Common created a guide focused on the under-reported local races you need to know about!
In November 2023, Austinites didn’t see many candidate names on their ballot… but they did see A LOT or propositions (16 to be exact).
As always, The Austin Common created guides and produced podcasts about all of them!
In May of 2023, Austinites went to the polls to vote on an important issue – police oversight and accountability. Two competing proposals ended up on the ballot – Prop A & B.
The Austin Common created an easy-to-read guide all about it… as well as a recap guide after the election was over.
The fall of 2022 was a big election year for Austin. For the first time in eight years, we had a truly competitive mayoral election… plus, half of Austin’s 10 City Council seats were up for election.
And that’s not all! We also had three bond elections on the ballot, funding everything from affordable housing to schools.
The Austin Common created easy-to-read guides on all of these races and recorded six podcast episodes!
The May 7th, 2022 election included one local propositions + two statewide propositions.
The local City of Austin proposition (Proposition A) decriminalized marijuana and banned no-knock warrants in Austin.
The Austin Common created a guide covering Prop A, and statewide Props 1 & 2. We also recorded a podcast episode about Prop A.
On March 1st, Texas held primary elections for dozens of statewide & local races.
The Austin Common created 7 election guides, covering races for local judicial seats, Travis County Commissioner, & Texas House District 51.
We also recorded 2 podcast episodes and interviewed 25 candidates running for local office, with a focus on often-reported judicial positions (like County Court at Law & Justice of the Peace).
On January 25th 2022, Austin held a special election for the District 4 City Council seat (after Council Member Greg Casar announced he was leaving office to run for Congress).
This is an important local position, but since the election was held at such a weird time, voter awareness was low. That’s why The Austin Common created a complete election guide (that was easily shareable on Instagram) & recorded a podcast episode with the candidates.
On November 2nd, 2021, an election was held that featured two local City of Austin propositions and eight statewide propositions.
The Austin Common created in-depth guides on local Prop A (about police funding) and Prop (about parks). We also created social media posts raising awareness about the election & recorded a podcast episode focused on Props A & B.
On May 1st, 2021, the City of Austin held local elections for eight different ballot propositions, covering topics from homelessness to the very structure of our local democratic system.
The Austin Common created easy-to-read guides for all eight of these propositions & recorded three podcast episodes. In partnership with the Greater Austin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, we also translated all of our election guides into Spanish.
November 3rd 2020 was a major presidential election, but there were also lots of important local races on the ballot. Here at The Austin Common, we tried to make sure those local elections didn’t get ignored with our Vote Local campaign. Together with the HOPE Campaign, we installed get-out-the-vote murals (painted by local artists) alll around town.
We created 12 election guides covering City Council races & local Prop A (which funded Project Connect, our city’s first real transit system) and Prop B (which provided funding for sidewalks & bike lanes). We also recorded six podcast episodes.