Here are the candidates running for San Antonio mayor this year

SAN ANTONIO — More than a dozen candidates are vying to be Mayor Ron Nirenberg’s successor and win the top job in San Antonio. 

Nirenberg, a four-term mayor will leave office next summer, having reached the term limit as set by the San Antonio City Charter.

The filing period for mayor and all 10 city council positions opened Wednesday at 8 a.m. and runs through Feb. 14. However, several people had officially appointed a campaign treasurer ahead of that, marking their first step in running ahead of the opening of the filing period. 

The election is May 3, 2025.

Here are the candidates who have appointed a campaign treasurer in the race for San Antonio mayor. 

Altamirano, a South Texas native and cofounder of San Antonio-based Irys Technologies, announced his run for mayor back in May.

According to the biography on his campaign’s website, Altamirano was born in Mission, Texas, to immigrant parents; he later graduated from the University of Texas in Austin with a degree in government before moving to San Antonio. Here, he started Irys in 2017. 

“Our community is what inspired me to keep going,” Altamirano says in a campaign video. “When I chose San Antonio to start my company, it was only possible because of this community.”

This military veteran is running for mayor, according to a campaign Facebook page and a campaign website. Alvarado served in the U.S. Army and U.S. Army Reserves for a combined 23 years, according to his campaign biography.

He also served in multiple positions with the American Legion.

“If we lead together, San Antonio will be a place we are happier to call home. As elections near, I will be honored to be the next leader you choose for mayor,” his campaign website says. 

Atwood is a licensed Department of Treasury agent, according to his campaign website biography. He is also the founder of Business Master Tax Solutions.

His campaign website says he has “the experience our city must have to ensure we resolve our city’s important issues such as ensuring our city is safe, growing our economy and ensuring the city’s budget is balanced in order to resolve these important issues.”

Cabello Havrda, who calls herself a moderate City Council member and has represented District 6 since 2019, officially kickstarted her campaign in early December from the steps of City Hall. 

“I’m running on a belief system, and that is under three premises,” Cabello Havrda told KENS 5. “City Hall should work for you, you should feel safe in your neighborhood (and) we should create opportunities right here at home.”

Cabello Havrda is a native of San Antonio’s west side and alumna of St. Mary’s School of Law who previously worked for mayors Ed Garza and Lila Cockrell.

The former District 10 city councilman announced a run for mayor back in September. He represented the district for three terms from 2017 to 2023, deciding against re-election after a DWI controversy. 

“I’m very, very excited. I’ve been getting a lot of encouragement to run,” the conservative-leaning Perry told KENS 5, pointing to his efforts to boost the city’s police force and infrastructure funding while on council. “There’s some folks that are trying to develop this city like a shiny city on the hill. That can’t happen unless we address these underlying issues, primarily high crime, high tax rates that we have and poor infrastructure.” 

During his time in office, Perry was a vocal proponent of property tax relief for San Antonio homeowners. He also, in 2022, voted against the first CPS Energy rate hike in eight years. 

This candidate filed to appoint a campaign treasurer in June 2024.

Espinosa is a candidate for mayor in San Antonio, according to the campaign treasurers report and his Facebook page. The social media profile describes him as a “digital creator.”

Christopher Herring filed a campaign treasurer’s report in December 2024. He currently serves as executive cirector for Global Chamber San Antonio and is a combat veteran with U.S. Air Force, according to a listing with the San Antonio Council of International visitors.

Lopez filed to appoint a campaign treasurer in July 2024. 

McCullough is the CEO and owner of Jaszy Angel’s Childcare, LLC, according to a press release announcing her run for mayor. In the press release, she says she was made homeless due to an apartment complex’s negligence and she now would like “to fight for those who don’t have a voice and need to be heard.”

Melvin served as Texas Small Business Advocate under former Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s tenure, according to his campaign website’s biography. He also is the CEO of Limitless Creations, LLC, overseeing real estate developments.

Ortiz Jones, a former congressional candidate and U.S. Air Force intelligence officer, is vying for local office and planning to run for San Antonio mayor, according to an early December announcement.

Ortiz Jones, a 43-year-old Democrat, was nominated by President Biden to be Air Force undersecretary and served in the role from 2021 to 2023. 

She most recently competed to unseat Tony Gonzales in Congressional District 23 in 2020, losing the general election by fewer than 11,000 votes out of nearly 300,000 ballots cast. Her failed 2018 bid to unseat Will Hurd for the same seat was even tighter, with just 926 votes separating the two candidates out of more than 210,000. 

Six years after resigning his position as Texas secretary of state, Pablos is seeking election to local office after announcing his intent to run for San Antonio mayor back in August.

He said that, if elected, he hoped to leverage his state-level experience and international connections to maximize the Alamo City’s economic potential. 

“I’ve got excellent, established relations not only in Austin but across the world,” he said. “So I’m able to bring those relationships so that we can attract that quality investment that is going to create those jobs.” 

The District 8 councilmember has served that region for eight years. On Twitter, he called this term his last. He announced on YouTube in April that he was planning a run for mayor.

“I’m running for mayor because I believe in San Antonio, and I have actionable, common-sense solutions to make us safer, smarter, and stronger. We can get our economy back on track, support our police and first responders, and put San Antonio first—without ever losing what makes us unique and authentic,” Pelaez said in the YouTube video. 

Pelaez is an employment law attorney.

Reyes is a military veteran who served in the U.S. Army, according to his campaign website. He is currently employed as a survey tech for an engineering company.

Rocha Garcia announced her plans to run in August. She was first elected to San Antonio City Council in 2019. 

She has been reelected twice since then, most recently in 2023, when she received about three-quarters of the votes against her lone opponent. 

She currently represents District 4, which covers the south side between West Military, Commercial and FM 1957/Potranco Road, stretching past Loop 410.

“I think my experience as a councilwoman is going to greatly help with the campaign because I know that the issues that are important to the public aren’t just about one neighborhood or one area,” Rocha Garcia said at the time she announced, adding that issues like quality of living, health care and safety are relevant to San Antonians all around the city. 

Sanchez filed to appoint a campaign treasurer in January 2025. 

Traut filed to appoint a campaign treasurer in December 2024.

Vicencio is a retired combat veteran with the U.S. Army, according to his campaign’s Facebook page. His page shows he reducing crime will be a big part of his campaign. 

Westley is a U.S. Army veteran and author of five books, according to his campaign website. He obtainedhis doctorate in educational leadership from Trident University International.