The mayor faced an ethics complaint for her efforts to bring the convention to the South Texas.
SAN ANTONIO — Among the first things Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones did after her election last summer was throw San Antonio’s name in the ring for the 2028 Democratic National Convention, even collecting an ethics complaint in the process.
Her efforts were for naught.
The DNC announced Monday that it had narrowed its list of host city contenders to Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver and Philadelphia—passing up Texas entirely despite Jones making San Antonio’s case as a city that is “bold, inclusive and emblematic of the American future,” according to a letter penned July 1, 2025, to organizers.
“Our residents are warm, welcoming and proud of the cultural richness that defines our city and the future of our nation,” she wrote in the letter, also pointing to convention center accommodations, the local military presence and a “rich history of civic engagement.”
Two weeks after making the push, a San Antonio resident field an ethics complaint arguing that the decision to use City of San Antonio letterhead for the correspondence amounted to an abuse of city resources. The mayor, officially a non-partisan position, was also accused by the same person of abusing her seat by not making the same request of the Republican National Convention.
The Ethics Review Board dismissed the complaint in October after Jones’ attorney argued it was politically motivated and clarified the letter was initiated not by Jones but by Visit San Antonio, the city’s tourism arm. City Attorney Andy Segovia also shared his belief that the letter “was consistent with the role of the mayor to bring high-profile events to the city,” according to the outside counsel who review the ethics complaint.
The Republican National Convention had already picked Houston as its host site for the 2028 event back in August 2023.
DNC officials, meanwhile, said Monday that the five finalists for its event will be visited in the spring before a final decision is made. The convention will be held from Aug. 7-10, 2028.