AUSTIN, Texas — Want to make your voice heard during KVUE's debate between Austin mayoral candidates Kirk Watson and Celia Israel?
On Monday, Dec. 5, at 6 p.m., KVUE is hosting a debate between the two candidates competing in a runoff election for Austin's top job.
Ahead of the debate, we're asking you to submit the questions you would most like to hear the candidates answer. To submit a question, click here or below. You'll be asked to share your first name, the Austin neighborhood you live in and your question.
KVUE cannot guarantee that your question will be asked during the debate, but we will try to incorporate as many viewer questions as we can. The survey will close on Thursday night after our 10 p.m. newscast.
KVUE's Managing Editor of Political Content Ashley Goudeau will serve as moderator of the Dec. 5 debate. The full debate will air live on KVUE and be livestreamed on KVUE.com, our KVUE YouTube page and on KVUE+, available on Amazon Fire-TV and Roku.
Neither Watson nor Israel received more than 50% in the Austin mayoral election on Nov. 8, forcing the December runoff.
Watson previously served as mayor of Austin from 1997 until 2001. In 2002, he ran for Texas attorney general and lost to Greg Abbott. He spent 13 years in the Texas Senate, to which he was elected from 2007 to 2020 before he retired to become the first dean of the University of Houston’s Hobby School of Public Affairs.
According to her campaign website, Celia Israel has been an Austinite since 1982. She graduated from the University of Texas and served former Gov. Ann Richards’ administration before becoming a Realtor. She later became a member of the Texas House of Representatives, where she has represented the Austin area since 2014.
Early voting for the Austin runoff elections runs from Thursday, Dec. 1, through Friday, Dec. 9. Election Day is Tuesday, Dec. 13.
For more of what you need to know before heading to the polls this election, check out our voter guide.