Latest / Austin Signal / What to know about Prop I and local propositions, City Council District 9 race, Elections behind the scenes

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What to know about Prop I and local propositions, City Council District 9 race, Elections behind the scenes · Austin Signal

0:08
It is the first day of early voting
0:10
in Texas, and here in Austin,
0:11
there are five city council seats
0:13
that are being contested.
0:14
That includes the District 9 seat
0:16
covering downtown and the UT campus.
0:18
Four challengers are vying against
0:20
the current incumbent.
0:22
And Austinites will also have their
0:23
say on a number of propositions,
0:25
including one that would require the
0:27
city undergo an independent audit
0:28
every five years.
0:30
Austin already employs a company to
0:32
audit city departments, but with
0:33
passage, the would make the
0:35
process much more permanent.
0:37
We've got much more election
0:38
coverage coming up on today's show.
0:40
The Austin Signal is a production
0:42
of KUT News, hosted by
0:44
Jerry Quijano.
0:45
Plus, we're going to hear about the
0:47
preparations that have gone into
0:48
this election season, from the
0:50
folks in Travis County putting them
0:51
on to the League of Women Voters
0:53
who've been prepping for years.
0:55
Those stories and more up
0:57
next on Austin Signal.
1:08
Howdy out there, this is
1:10
Austin Signal.
1:11
I'm your host, Jerry Kehannel, glad
1:13
to be back with you.
1:14
It is October 19th,
1:16
and it's the first day of early
1:18
voting. We've got a very special
1:20
elections-focused show for you today
1:22
on this brisk 70-something
1:23
degree Monday afternoon.
1:26
Thank you so much for being with us.
1:28
One of the things that has Austin
1:30
voters talking is Proposition I.
1:32
You may have seen the dueling
1:33
signage around town, but what
1:35
exactly is it, and how did it end up
1:37
the ballot this November.
1:39
Joining us to talk more about Prop
1:41
I and the other props on the ballot
1:42
is KUT's Gabriel Velasquez-Neda.
1:44
Gabriel, thank you for being here.
1:46
Hey, Joey, thank you.
1:47
OK I want to read the language from
1:48
Prop I just because you know some
1:50
voters might have seen it already
1:51
might have voted already early this
1:52
morning but lots more people are
1:54
going to be checking this out so the
1:55
official language on the Prop I says
1:57
shall the city charter be amended
1:59
to require an independent
2:00
affordability and efficiency
2:02
initiative on a regular basis and
2:04
before any tax rate increase
2:06
election and requiring the
2:08
independent contractor to identify
2:10
annual and multi-year savings
2:12
that exceed the cost of the
2:14
contractor service So Gabrielle, we
2:15
brought you in here to ask.
2:17
What is that actually saying?
2:20
Yeah, so, first of all, the audit
2:21
would go into the city charters,
2:22
which is basically like the
2:23
constitution of the city.
2:25
And it would force a city that
2:27
periodically, every couple of years,
2:29
they have to do an audit.
2:30
And the person that they hire or the
2:32
company that they hired to do this
2:33
audit has to find costs
2:36
that, as the
2:38
language mentions, exceeds the
2:40
amount of the contract.
2:41
So the city would actually be saving
2:43
money, theoretically.
2:44
Does the city already do these
2:46
kinds of audits?
2:47
It does, actually.
2:48
So currently, there is an audit
2:49
being done.
2:51
It's an efficiency assessment by the
2:53
auditor's office that the city has a
2:54
whole department dedicated to.
2:57
And yeah, they're going department
2:59
by department trying to make the
3:00
city government more efficient.
3:01
Okay, so what is the difference
3:02
between the audits that are
3:04
currently employed by the City of
3:05
Austin and what this prop might do?
3:07
So there are some
3:09
requirements that,
3:11
I guess, differentiates Prop
3:13
I, but those are kind of niche.
3:16
The biggest thing, the over
3:18
60,000 foot view,
3:20
is that one is gonna be in the
3:21
city's charter, meaning it's
3:22
required, if it gets repealed,
3:24
it has to go back to the voters for
3:26
it to be repealed.
3:27
And if the language changes at all,
3:29
it has go back the voters for the
3:31
language to be changed.
3:32
The ordinance,
3:34
it's more on the whim of the city
3:36
council. If city council gets
3:38
replaced the new city council
3:40
can take it out basically or after
3:41
the election they could replace it
3:43
or to change the wording or tweak it
3:45
however they like and it's not as
3:47
fixed so prop i would make it
3:48
much more much more stable
3:50
Okay, some of the propositions that
3:51
are offered on ballots tend to be a
3:53
little contentious either way.
3:54
What is making this one so
3:56
contentious?
3:57
I think what makes
3:59
it so contentious is
4:01
the context for
4:03
which it comes from, which is kind
4:04
of like Doge type of
4:06
behavior, where you have these
4:08
governmental departments on the
4:09
federal level that have been
4:10
stripped and work is fired, and
4:12
people are worried that that's going
4:14
to be happening at the city level in
4:15
Austin.
4:17
I think what also makes it
4:19
controversial is the co-founder of
4:21
Save Austin Now, which is the
4:22
political action committee behind
4:24
the proposition.
4:26
The guy's name is Matt Makowiak and
4:27
he's the former Travis County
4:29
GOP chair.
4:31
Okay, the people who are in support
4:32
of Propi, what are they saying?
4:34
What have you heard from them?
4:36
So the supporters, obviously,
4:39
it would make the government save
4:41
money, government more efficient,
4:44
remove some of that bloat that
4:45
people are worried about and,
4:47
you know, save taxpayers money.
4:49
Which it seems like some of the
4:50
audits that are already in
4:52
place are trying to do that, so the
4:54
people who are against PropEye, what
4:56
is their reasoning?
4:57
So their reasoning is like you
4:59
just mentioned, there's already an
5:00
audit.
5:02
Also, the fact that the
5:04
company or the auditor would have to
5:06
find costs that exceed
5:08
the amount of the contract, they
5:10
feel like it's kind of like a
5:11
conflict of interest where
5:13
they're gonna cut more than what's
5:15
necessary in order to, I guess,
5:17
increase how much they can charge
5:18
the city.
5:20
The fact that it's gonna be in the
5:21
charter means that I guess
5:23
people that are against Prop I so
5:25
that the city is not going to have
5:26
much leverage.
5:27
Since they're forced to do the
5:29
audit, yes or yes.
5:31
Okay, Prop I is just one of eight
5:33
propositions that is going to be on
5:35
the ballot for Austin voters, so
5:36
tell us a little bit about some of
5:38
the other props.
5:38
Yeah, so the first two
5:41
propositions, Prop A and Prop B, are
5:42
actually bonds.
5:44
And it basically, it would allow the
5:45
city to raise money to fund parks
5:47
and libraries.
5:49
It'll also increase property
5:51
taxes.
5:53
There's another one that would allow
5:54
the city council to hire and fire
5:56
the city attorney.
5:58
Currently, that position is under
5:59
the city manager.
6:02
So having, I guess, a direct
6:03
connection between city council and
6:04
city attorney, that's another
6:06
proposition there.
6:07
And
6:09
Yeah, also city council meets once
6:11
a week, they want to remove that.
6:13
They want to remove the requirement
6:15
that city council meets once a week.
6:16
Yeah, so they would remove the
6:18
requirement to meet once a week,
6:19
they'd currently meet every Thursday,
6:20
and then they would make the
6:22
scheduled meetings for them more
6:23
flexible.
6:25
Okay well we've been talking a
6:26
little bit about Proposition I and
6:27
some of the other propositions that
6:28
are going to be on your ballot and
6:30
we've been speaking with KUT's
6:32
Gabriel Velasquez-Neda who has
6:33
more about the propositions on
6:36
the KUT app and online at
6:37
KUT.org.
6:39
Gabriel thank you for your time.
6:40
Thank you Jerry.
6:49
Voters in Austin's District 9
6:51
will choose a city council member
6:53
this November.
6:54
District 9 stretches across the
6:56
heart of the city, and it includes
6:57
downtown and the UT Austin campus,
7:00
as well as central Austin
7:01
neighborhoods like Cherrywood and
7:03
Hyde Park.
7:04
Key UT's Olivia Aldridge spoke with
7:06
incumbent Zoe Quadri and his
7:08
challengers about why they
7:09
want to represent the district.
7:11
Like other City Council races in
7:13
Austin this fall, the candidates for
7:15
District 9 are focused on housing
7:17
affordability.
7:18
That includes Zoe Kadri, the
7:20
district's current City Council
7:21
member.
7:23
Kadri says he's proud of progress
7:24
the city has made since he was
7:26
elected in 2022,
7:28
including passing the home ordinance
7:29
that allowed for denser development
7:31
on city lots.
7:33
But there's still more he wants to
7:35
do.
7:35
We have a land development code that
7:36
hasn't fully updated since 1984.
7:38
So we need to continue to work on
7:39
housing and parking reforms and
7:41
honestly, mobility reforms.
7:43
But to have a shot at a second term,
7:45
Kadri will have to defeat four
7:46
challengers at the polls,
7:48
Rich Heyman, Katie Kam, Kai
7:50
Huang, and current UT student
7:52
Dave Tadani, who did not respond to
7:54
requests for an interview with KUT.
7:57
Candidate Katie Kam is a civil
7:59
engineer and former Austin ISD
8:01
science teacher.
8:02
All my career choices have all been
8:04
about how can I be of service
8:06
to Austin.
8:07
For Cam, improving affordability
8:09
comes down to three factors.
8:11
One is fostering affordable housing
8:13
policies, including an expansion of
8:15
a home ownership program that
8:17
already exists in the Mueller
8:18
neighborhood.
8:19
But she also says expanding
8:20
transportation options and
8:22
cost-efficient government are part
8:24
of the puzzle.
8:25
Another challenger, former UT Urban
8:27
Studies Professor, Rich Hayman,
8:29
says he wants to prioritize more
8:31
subsidized housing for low-income
8:33
residents.
8:34
He also wants to curb tax incentives
8:36
for large corporations.
8:37
And has a plan for what he'd do
8:39
instead.
8:40
Use that money to
8:42
have a very robust
8:44
economic development policy that was
8:46
targeted at small
8:48
and local businesses that
8:50
agree to treat their
8:52
employees well by paying them
8:55
a living wage.
8:56
Kai Huang works in cryptocurrency.
8:58
He's run a quiet campaign, not
9:00
participating in public forums or
9:02
reporting any campaign
9:03
contributions.
9:04
He says he would focus on increasing
9:06
housing supply and streamlining
9:08
Austin's permitting process for
9:09
development.
9:11
He also wants to focus on the issue
9:12
of homelessness.
9:14
I don't think they're doing enough
9:16
in terms of solving capacity as
9:18
well as doing the
9:20
root cause of the issue.
9:21
Wong wants to work with downtown
9:22
developers to offer incentives to
9:24
add shelter beds in other parts of
9:26
the city.
9:27
Kadri and Heyman say Austin has made
9:29
positive strides in funding more
9:30
shelter beds and permanent
9:32
supportive housing, though both say
9:34
there's more to be done.
9:36
Two of the candidates differed on
9:37
the sweeps of encampments led by
9:39
Austin police.
9:40
Kadri is opposed.
9:42
At the end of the day, people are
9:43
just losing their possessions and
9:45
they're just extremely inhumane.
9:47
But Cam says she sees a place for
9:49
the sweeps, though she acknowledges
9:50
criticisms of the practice.
9:52
There have been concerns raised
9:53
about perhaps there haven't
9:56
been good resources provided
9:59
to those that are
10:01
having to leave the camp.
10:02
And, of course, that's just
10:03
something that we improve upon.
10:05
Another point where the candidates
10:06
diverge is transit.
10:08
Kadri is an enthusiastic supporter
10:10
of Project Connect, the light rail
10:12
focused transit project voters
10:14
approved in 2020.
10:16
Hayman says he voted for the
10:17
project, but he's disappointed in
10:19
how it's been scaled back over the
10:21
years and is open to discussing
10:22
different options moving forward.
10:25
Kam says she didn't vote for Project
10:27
Connect and supports alternative
10:28
transit solutions like monorail.
10:31
Huang has a different perspective.
10:33
I encourage the
10:35
city to
10:37
spend money elsewhere,
10:40
like AI infrastructure,
10:42
building smarter cameras
10:45
to redirect traffic
10:47
here and there, depending on the
10:48
traffic flows.
10:49
Voters will have the opportunity to
10:51
weigh in on several specific local
10:53
issues this fall.
10:54
There's a $260 million park
10:56
bond and a $35 million
10:58
library bond on the ballot.
11:00
Kadri and Heyman support those.
11:02
While Kam says she's still deciding,
11:05
Wong wasn't familiar with the bonds.
11:07
Also on the ballet is Proposition I,
11:09
which would require the city to
11:11
undergo an independent financial
11:12
audit every five years.
11:14
Kam supports that, saying it will
11:16
encourage transparency.
11:17
So does Wong.
11:19
Picadry says the city has already
11:21
approved an independent audit
11:22
process on its own, and
11:24
Prop I is being put forth in bad
11:26
faith by conservative city critics.
11:29
Heyman also opposes Prop I.
11:31
He says the proposal would put
11:32
pressure on the city to make cuts
11:34
that may not be in Austin's
11:36
best interest.
11:37
I don't think that's a good
11:39
situation to get ourselves in.
11:41
Early voting runs from October 19th
11:43
to the 30th.
11:44
Election day is on November 3rd.
11:47
I'm Olivia Aldridge in Austin.
11:55
All right, we are marking the first
11:57
day of early voting in the midterms
12:00
by bringing you a bunch of stories
12:01
focused on elections here in
12:04
Austin, in Travis County,
12:06
and we have voter guides for Travis,
12:07
Hayes, and Williamson Counties over
12:09
at kut.org and on the
12:11
KUT app.
12:12
And we're gonna keep bringing you
12:13
more today and throughout the
12:16
election season.
12:17
But first, we gotta take a very
12:19
short break.
12:20
After that, we have more Austin
12:21
Signal coming your way.
12:31
This is Austin Signal,
12:32
welcome back.
12:34
As I have mentioned a few times,
12:36
it's the first day of early voting
12:37
for the midterm elections.
12:39
And for many people here in Travis
12:41
County, this might be the first that
12:42
you've thought about your plan for
12:44
heading to the polls.
12:45
No worries, but election workers
12:47
at the Travis County Clerk's Office,
12:49
well they have been planning since
12:50
March and probably a little bit
12:52
before that too.
12:53
KUT's Katie McAfee visited the
12:55
Clerk's office late last week and
12:57
has this behind the scenes look.
12:58
At what goes into pulling off
13:00
an election.
13:03
Days out from the start of early
13:05
voting, the Travis County Clerk's
13:06
Office was buzzing.
13:08
About a dozen staffers wearing
13:10
headsets are fielding questions from
13:12
voters in a fluorescent-lit call
13:14
center.
13:14
Oh you're doing ballot by mail
13:16
though.
13:17
Okay, hold on.
13:18
We'll be able to figure this out.
13:19
The phones are already ringing off
13:21
the hook, but this team is
13:23
just getting started.
13:24
The team here is expecting to answer
13:26
around 25,000 calls
13:28
in the next two weeks.
13:30
Meanwhile, staffers down the hall
13:31
are facing an equally daunting
13:33
task, processing the first
13:35
batches of mail-in ballots that have
13:36
already been delivered.
13:40
Travis County expects 27,000
13:42
mail-in ballots to come in over the
13:44
next two weeks.
13:45
Just outside the office, a different
13:47
team is loading trucks with
13:49
everything needed at each early
13:51
voting site.
13:52
Now
13:55
That includes ballots,
13:57
tables, electrical supply boxes,
13:59
privacy shields and vote here signs.
14:02
Another team is checking to see if
14:04
each polling site is accessible for
14:06
voters with disabilities.
14:08
If there's been damage to the
14:09
sidewalk leading to the voting place
14:11
or if the threshold to enter the
14:12
building is uneven, they need to go
14:14
out and fix it.
14:15
Travis County Clerk Diana Lamone
14:17
Mercado says they have to do that no
14:19
matter what.
14:19
There might be a flood in the
14:20
building on Sunday night.
14:21
It is still a full place on Monday
14:22
morning. So this team will activate
14:24
to help with any remediation
14:26
so that we can make sure that the
14:28
full place is still accessible.
14:29
First thing, Monday morning
14:31
There are more polling locations
14:32
open this year than ever before,
14:34
45 during early voting and
14:36
201 on election day.
14:38
The polls are open from 7 a.m.
14:40
To 7 p.m every day this year,
14:42
even over the weekend.
14:43
Limón Mercado is trying to get more
14:45
young people to the polls,
14:47
and she's luring them in with
14:48
something a little sweeter than an
14:50
I Voted sticker.
14:51
We have
14:51
worked with our high schools and
14:53
school districts to recruit student
14:55
election workers so you can get
14:57
special permission and get paid to
14:59
be an election worker for Election
15:01
Day.
15:02
County pays above the state minimum,
15:03
up to $25 an hour, depending on
15:05
the role.
15:06
It's open to all registered voters
15:08
in the county, but Limón Mercado
15:10
says getting young people to fill
15:11
those jobs helps them build good
15:13
habits early on.
15:14
There's research that shows the
15:16
earlier somebody votes, the closer
15:18
to 18 they are when they cast that
15:20
first ballot, the more likely they
15:21
are to become a lifelong voter.
15:23
And that is something that we want
15:24
to encourage here in Travis County.
15:27
Limon Mercado is expecting the
15:28
voters of Travis County, lifelong
15:30
or not, to break some records
15:32
this election.
15:34
Nearly 30% of the county's
15:35
registered voters cast a ballot
15:37
during the primaries.
15:38
That might seem unimpressive, but
15:40
that turned out surpassed even some
15:42
presidential primaries, if that
15:44
momentum continues to the next two
15:46
weeks, it can mean backups at the
15:47
polls.
15:48
But knowing who you're voting for in
15:50
advance and checking polling place
15:52
wait times could get you in and out
15:53
faster.
15:54
You can find more information to
15:56
help you make a plan to vote at
15:57
KUT.org.
15:59
I'm Katie McAfee in Austin.
16:09
Alright, we have already heard some
16:11
stories of lines at polling sites
16:13
on day one of early voting, so
16:14
if you've already cast your ballot,
16:16
nicely done.
16:17
And if you haven't, no worries,
16:19
but heads up, before you head to the
16:21
polls this election season, just
16:22
know that there are plenty of ways
16:24
to get informed about what you're
16:26
going to see on your ballot.
16:28
One organization that has been
16:29
working to advance voter engagement
16:30
for more than a century is the
16:32
League of Women Voters, and
16:34
joining us now from the Austin area
16:35
Chapter of the Organization as
16:37
Spokesperson Carol Eckelkamp And
16:39
Claudia Torres-Yanez, Vice President
16:41
of Voter Services.
16:42
Carol, Claudia, thank you for
16:43
joining us.
16:44
So we're happy to be here.
16:45
Thank you for having us.
16:47
So let's talk about what
16:49
kind of work the League of Women
16:50
Voters does prior to and during an
16:52
election.
16:53
I think one of the main things that
16:55
we look at is the publication of the
16:56
voters guide to get all that ready
16:58
and chasing the candidates and
17:00
getting all their answers because we
17:02
want to make sure that the Austin
17:03
voters have a, or Travis County
17:05
voters I should say, have a
17:06
nonpartisan guide.
17:07
And then on top of that, we get
17:09
ready for the candidate forums with
17:10
the city of Austin and we
17:12
then have all of the get out the
17:14
vote initiatives.
17:15
So we do a lot of education along
17:17
with that and go out in the
17:19
community. So it involves those
17:20
prongs.
17:21
And just the fun we have doing
17:23
it.
17:24
It's a lot of work, but we're all
17:25
volunteers and we do it
17:26
passionately.
17:27
Claudio, can I ask you, what is some
17:29
of the outreach that the League of
17:30
Women Voters does to reach out to a
17:32
variety of voters?
17:33
Well, of course, we are always
17:35
welcoming requests
17:37
from community organizations
17:39
and groups that may want us to come
17:41
out to speak about
17:43
participating in elections,
17:45
voting, the registration process,
17:46
and even having voter registrars
17:48
available to help people register.
17:50
We partner a lot
17:52
with different community
17:53
organizations in and
17:55
around Austin.
17:56
You know, local Spanish
17:59
media stations will partner with
18:01
us and invite us out to, you know
18:02
co-table with them in a
18:04
non-partisan fashion at different
18:06
community events and make sure that
18:08
information is accessible to
18:10
community members in
18:11
their own language.
18:13
That is often, you now, Espanol,
18:15
Spanish, but other languages
18:17
as well.
18:18
We partner with different
18:20
organizations like in the Vietnamese
18:21
community as well, and we're
18:23
very proud to offer translated.
18:26
Voters guides, our goal is
18:28
to make the information as
18:30
accessible in the language
18:32
that people need to be empowered
18:34
and active participants in our
18:35
democracy.
18:37
There are lots of things to consider
18:38
before going to the poll.
18:39
You want to know what's on your
18:40
ballot, what you can or can't wear,
18:42
what kind of identification you
18:43
might need.
18:44
Carol, what is one thing that you
18:46
think people really must know before
18:48
they head to the polls this season?
18:50
I think they have to know what's
18:51
down on the ballot, and that's
18:53
where your school boards, and that
18:55
where your bonds and your
18:56
propositions.
18:57
And we ask people to not just
18:59
think about the items that
19:01
are getting the most news, it's to
19:03
think about items that affect their
19:05
electricity rates and their
19:07
schools, and all of these things
19:09
that touch everyday people in their
19:11
everyday lives.
19:12
And I have a saying that I've been
19:14
using, I want people to vote
19:16
like their wifi depends
19:18
on it. And
19:21
It makes people kind of think.
19:22
And I think that when those down
19:24
ballots are in there, we
19:26
need information and you have to
19:28
write it down and you to have
19:30
either a ballot worksheet that we
19:31
have available on our website or
19:33
they have to go through any kind
19:35
of a voters guide and market because
19:37
that's one of the things that people
19:39
don't understand that move to
19:41
Texas or our students, we register
19:43
our 18 year olds and all through the
19:45
high schools and through ACC that
19:46
they can't take their devices.
19:48
All of us depend on our devices.
19:50
But they're not allowed inside a
19:51
polling place.
19:52
You can do it online, you can do
19:53
while you're in line.
19:55
You can use a device, but
19:57
to have a device
19:59
inside with all your answers, it's
20:01
not possible.
20:02
So it's a paper and a pencil,
20:04
and that down ballot is really
20:06
important, and a lot of people don't
20:07
get to the end of that ballot.
20:08
Well, today is the first day of
20:10
early voting, and election day
20:12
will be the first Tuesday in
20:13
November.
20:14
There's always the back and forth of
20:16
whether you should go vote early or
20:18
you'd like to vote on election day
20:19
and enjoy the pomp and circumstance.
20:22
Do y'all have a preference?
20:23
I'll start with you, Claudia.
20:24
Absolutely.
20:25
I learned the hard way, one election
20:27
cycle, and before I was
20:30
volunteering so heavily with the
20:31
League, I waited till election day
20:33
and I almost got stuck at work and
20:35
missed the 7 p.m.
20:37
Deadline on election day to be in
20:39
line. So ever since then and
20:40
ever since everything I've learned
20:42
as a volunteer with the league,
20:44
I make it a point to go vote early.
20:46
Um, originally my goal was day
20:48
one, but, um, I, I'd
20:50
rather be fully prepared with my
20:52
sample ballot and know exactly what
20:53
I'm going to vote for and be
20:55
informed.
20:56
So anytime in that first week of
20:57
early voting is, is typically my
20:59
goal and what I, um encourage
21:01
everyone in my family to do as well.
21:03
How about you, Carol?
21:04
I'm a Travis County election judge
21:06
and an alternate judge and I
21:07
usually wait until election day
21:09
because I'm working and I just
21:11
like to do it right then.
21:13
What else about your efforts to
21:15
get folks to the polls that I
21:16
haven't asked you about?
21:17
What else is on your mind this
21:19
particular election season?
21:21
I think what's on my mind is that in
21:23
2022, when we last had our,
21:25
we last elected a governor,
21:27
that of the eligible
21:29
voters, 58% did
21:31
not show up to vote.
21:33
And my concern is that our
21:35
vote is our voice.
21:36
And if we're not using our voice at
21:39
the polls, it's really hard to
21:41
have a say when
21:43
people are unhappy or policies don't
21:45
go the way that one thinks they
21:47
should go. So, if I look
21:49
at that statistic, that means 50.
21:50
58% of the people stayed at home in
21:53
the two weeks of early voting and on
21:54
election day. And that's
21:56
very discouraging to me.
21:57
So I'd like people to use their
21:59
voice and get out and vote.
22:01
Given how much discussion there's
22:02
been about the governor race here in
22:04
Texas, and particularly the Senate
22:05
race, do you anticipate that number
22:07
will be that high this go-round?
22:10
Unfortunately, I think
22:12
it will be high.
22:14
My hope in my heart is
22:16
that it won't be that high because
22:17
we're seeing I think a lot more
22:19
excitement about this
22:21
and people understand maybe more
22:23
because there's so many, there's
22:24
hundreds of community organizations
22:26
that are doing this.
22:27
And I think that's helping the cause
22:29
is to voice is a vote.
22:31
To add on to
22:33
Carol's comments, as
22:34
someone who volunteers to register
22:37
voters, I've
22:39
encountered numerous folks who have
22:41
come up to me and said, you know, I
22:42
moved to Texas 10 years
22:44
ago, 15 years ago, and I've never
22:46
voted and I want to register.
22:47
So I'm encouraged by
22:49
that enthusiasm to participate.
22:51
For those
22:53
that approach me with...
22:56
You know, some of that apathy or
22:58
concerns that, you know the
22:59
electoral college or their vote
23:01
doesn't matter.
23:02
I'm quick to remind them that the
23:04
electoral college has nothing to do
23:06
with our local or state elections.
23:08
And that I've
23:10
seen school board races, for
23:12
example in my own community that
23:14
have been decided by a handful
23:16
of votes. We have state reps in
23:18
the Travis County area whose races
23:19
have been by a hand full of votes
23:21
so every vote matters
23:24
and it's important to bring those.
23:26
Numbers that are not participating
23:28
down because it can actually
23:29
have an impact on the leadership.
23:32
One of the projects we did
23:34
over the summer, we called it
23:36
Paws to the Polls, P-A-W-S,
23:39
Paws. We had Gus and Franklin, a dog
23:41
and a cat.
23:41
And we took it into low voter
23:43
turnout communities.
23:45
And we were at the Southeast
23:48
Central Health Southeast Clinic
23:50
on Montopolis.
23:51
And that was the first time that I
23:53
had ever seen fear on
23:55
the face of two people walking
23:57
into a fake
23:59
election polling place.
24:00
But the fact that their name and
24:02
that there was a machine there and
24:04
it looked government official, even
24:05
though there was dog and a cat on
24:07
it, and we assured them it was fake,
24:08
but they were truly afraid of
24:11
whether it was the process, their
24:13
legal status, but to
24:15
have fear and to know that for
24:17
a hundred years that people do
24:19
sometimes have fear of an election,
24:21
but to see it firsthand and then
24:23
to see the children's excitement on
24:25
the other end of we were having
24:26
eight-year-olds and nine-year olds
24:27
pick a cat or a dog and vote and get
24:29
excited about the process.
24:31
I think that was probably one of the
24:32
more exciting things that we did
24:33
this summer to be in the community.
24:35
And that was a partnership with
24:36
Travis County Clerk's Office.
24:38
They loaded up those machines for us
24:40
and we took them out in the
24:41
Community and we still have them.
24:42
I think on October 27th, we're
24:44
gonna be at Highland Mall at the ACC
24:45
Riverbats.
24:46
And I think Gus and Franklin are
24:47
coming with us.
24:49
Alright, on this first day of early
24:50
voting, we've been speaking with
24:52
Carol EchoCamp and Claudia
24:53
Torres-Yanez from the League of
24:55
Women Voters. Thank you for your
24:56
time.
24:57
Thank you for having us.
24:59
And thank you for tuning in on this
25:00
special election-focused episode
25:02
of Austin Signal, a reminder that
25:04
we have an Austin area voter guide
25:06
as well as guides for Travis Hayes
25:08
and Williamson Counties on
25:10
the KUT app and online at
25:12
kut.org.
25:13
And there's more from us at kutt.org
25:17
slash signal.
25:18
The signal team is Caroline Feil,
25:20
Alexandra Hart, Kristen Cabrera,
25:22
and I'm your host, Jerry Kehono.
25:24
We're gonna be back at the same time
25:26
tomorrow.
25:26
Talk to you then.