Connect with us

Austin, TX

How Central Texas has voted in recent Senate elections

Published

on

How Central Texas has voted in recent Senate elections


Democrats believe the 2024 contest between Ted Cruz and Colin Allred could break a decades-long losing streak in the Lone Star State.

Advertisement

A Democrat has not represented Texas in the US Senate since 1993.

Recent election results show Travis County is a Democratic stronghold for United States Senate hopefuls and the margin of victory has continued to grow over the past decade.

Advertisement

Fifty-nine percent of Travis County voters chose Paul Sadler during the 2012 Senate contest between him and Ted Cruz. 

That number stayed around 55 percent in 2014 when David Alameel carried Travis County in a losing effort against Republican John Cornyn.

Since then, the number has only grown.

Advertisement

Beto O’Rourke gathered 74 percent of Travis County voters in 2018 when he tried to unseat Cruz.

In the 2020 contest between Cornyn and Democratic challenger Mary Hegar, the margin of victory fell slightly with Hegar collecting 68 percent of the vote to Cornyn’s 29 percent.

Advertisement

Elsewhere in Central Texas, results have varied for Senate hopefuls.

Cruz claimed a nine-point victory in Hays County in 2012 with 51 percent of the vote, but only managed 42 percent of the vote in 2018, losing to O’Rourke by 15 points.

Cornyn saw a similar shift in 2020 when Hegar claimed a 6 point victory with 51 percent of the vote. 

Advertisement

Cornyn won in Hays County by 18 points over Alameel in 2014.

(Xinhua/Dan Tian via Getty Images)

Advertisement

A majority of voters continue to support the Republican candidates in Williamson County.

Since 2012, the county has only went to the Democrats one time. O’Rourke collected 51 percent of the county’s votes in a two percent victory over Cruz. Cruz won Williamson County in 2012 by 20 points with 57 percent of the vote.

Cornyn would reclaim Williamson County for Republicans in 2020, gathering 50 percent of the votes en route to a three-point victory over Hegar.

Advertisement

Cornyn won the county by almost 30 points in 2014 with 62 percent of the vote.

Despite recent gains by Democrats in Hays and Williamson counties and extending their hold in Travis County, no Democrat has won a statewide Texas election since 1994.



Source link

Advertisement

Austin, TX

Southwest Airlines establishing new crew base in Austin

Published

on

Southwest Airlines establishing new crew base in Austin


AUSTIN, Texas (KVIA) — Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced that Southwest Airlines will establish a new pilot and flight attendant crew base in Austin.

Abbott joined the Austin mayor at the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport to make the announcement today.

The expansion to Austin will lay the groundwork for future operational growth in Texas. It is expected to generate 2,000 jobs in Austin by mid-2027. In addition to the pilots and flight attendants, Austin will now also be home to managerial and support staff. The new crew base will have an average salary of $180,000 a year, the Governor’s Office says.

Advertisement

The state is extending a $14 million Texas Enterprise Fund to the airline, as well as a $375,000 Veteran Created Job Bonus.

“Southwest Airlines was born and raised in Texas and has been a core element of the economic growth we have seen in our state,” said Governor Abbott. “We are excited to announce that today Southwest Airlines will add over 2,000 high paying jobs right here in Texas. We are the home of economic opportunity for our fellow Texans more than any other state in the United States, and we know a key reason for that is because of everything Southwest Airlines provides. We are proud to partner with everybody connected with Southwest as well as the City of Austin on such a huge announcement for our state.”



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Austin, TX

Fire destroys abandoned E Austin auto shop

Published

on

Fire destroys abandoned E Austin auto shop


Austin firefighters battled their second major fire Thursday afternoon, responding to an abandoned East Austin auto shop engulfed in flames.

Crews responded to 3100 Manor Road around 4 p.m., AFD said.

No injuries were reported and no one was inside the building.

ALSO | 40+ residents displaced in North Austin third-alarm apartment fire, no injuries reported

Advertisement

The incident was called in as a first alarm. The building is a total loss, according to officials.

CBS Austin has a crew on the way to the scene.

Comment with Bubbles

BE THE FIRST TO COMMENT

Earlier in the afternoon, firefighters extinguished a three-alarm fire in north Austin.

Advertisement



Source link

Continue Reading

Austin, TX

Austin road rage suspect identified, charged with criminal mischief: affidavit

Published

on

Austin road rage suspect identified, charged with criminal mischief: affidavit


The suspect in a violent road rage incident on the Capital of Texas Highway has been identified and charged, according to court paperwork.

The altercation was caught on camera.

Advertisement

What we know:

34-year-old Ian Kevin Brinkmeyer has been charged with criminal mischief, a Class B misdemeanor, in connection with the Dec. 5 incident.

At around 2 p.m. that day, officers responded to a call for service on Capital of Texas Highway, where they spoke with Brinkmeyer and another man.

Advertisement

The affidavit says Brinkmeyer “engaged in a road rage” with the other man while traveling north on Capital of Texas Highway. Brinkmeyer drove around the other man, changed lanes in front of him and cut him off before stopping his car.

Brinkmeyer then allegedly got out of his vehicle holding a “steel knife sharpening rod”, walked over to the other man’s car and struck the driver’s side door window with the rod, shattering the entire window.

Advertisement

The affidavit says Brinkmeyer then quickly walked back to his car and drove off.

The entire incident was caught on video by other drivers and posted on social media.

Advertisement

The affidavit says that the repairs to the shattered window cost about $480, making this a case of criminal mischief with a value between $100 and $750.

What’s next:

A warrant has been issued for Brinkmeyer’s arrest. As of 12 p.m. Dec. 11, he is not in custody.

Advertisement

The Source: Information in this report comes from court paperwork and previous reporting.

Crime and Public SafetyAustin



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Trending