Place one incumbent Chris Riley will now have three more years on Austin’s City Council. The 46-year old attorney won re-election by a big margin.
“We haven’t gotten everything exactly right,” Riley said, “but we have been able to work with the community in a collaborative way and achieve some real successes.”
Supporters came to celebrate at Zocalo in Austin. Many, like council member Mike Martinez, were confident it would be a victory.
Not only did Riley greatly outspend his competitors, he had the endorsement of the police union.
He also had a history when it came to revitalizing the city’s urban core through bike paths and rail.
“If we just continue sprawling outward at the edges, with all our traffic congestion and all, our transportation problems are just going to get worse and worse,” Riley said.
During the campaign, opponents criticized his back and forth position on a city settlement with the family of shooting victim Nathaniel Sanders. It was something that Riley ultimately opposed.
