Campaign Context: How ‘down-ballot’ races may impact Austin voters

As Election Day nears, politicians are turning up the volume on campaign rhetoric. To cut through the noise, we’re launching Campaign Context, our series providing clarity on the messages you’re hearing from candidates on the campaign trail. We’re digging past the politics and into the facts to provide you with the transparent, spin-free information you need to make informed decisions this election season.

AUSTIN (KXAN) — As Election Day nears, even if you’ve settled on who you’re choosing for those ‘top-of-the-ticket’ races such as the presidential matchup between Vice President Kamala Harris and Former President Donald Trump, or the U.S. Senate battle between Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Colin Allred, expect to see many other candidate races and measures on your ballot.

In Travis County, for example, you’ll be asked to make more than 40 decisions.

Those ‘down-ballot’ races are really important. Case in point — the Austin mayoral race. Austin voters will have five candidates to choose from this election, and you can hear directly from them in a live debate Thursday, Oct. 17 at 4 p.m. on KXAN.

Ahead of the debate, let’s break down how the person sitting in the mayor’s seat affects your life.

We all know the mayor helps lead the city, but how they do that varies city to city. In Austin, we have a council-manager form of municipal government, splitting responsibilities between the mayor and city council, and the city manager.

The mayor and council handle the legislative functions of the city, setting policy, approving the budget, and determining the tax rate. Municipal court judges, the city clerk, and the city auditor all report to the mayor and council, as well.

The city manager is like the CEO of the city. They implement the policies set by the mayor and council and oversee most staff and day-to-day functions of the city.

The mayor is actually a member of the city council and they’re the only member elected at large. The remaining 10 city council members are elected by the people who live in their districts.

The city manager is appointed by —you guessed it— the mayor and city council.

So during Thursday’s debate, when you’re listening to the candidates, think of who you want setting policies and approving budgets for the city for the next four years. It’s a big decision.

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