2009 San Antonio mayoral election

The San Antonio mayoral election of 2009 was held on May 9, 2009. The incumbent mayor Phil Hardberger was term-limited after serving two terms. The election was won by Julian Castro, who took office on June 1, 2009. The election was officially nonpartisan.

2009 San Antonio mayoral election

← 2007 May 9, 2009 2011 →
Turnout11.61% Increase
 
Candidate Julian Castro Trish DeBerry-Mejia Diane G. Cibrian
Popular vote 42,745 22,031 6,181
Percentage 56.23% 28.98% 8.13%

Mayor before election

Phil Hardberger

Elected mayor

Julian Castro

Announced candidates

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  • Lauro Bustamante
  • Julian Castro, former City Councilman and 2005 mayoral candidate
  • Diane Cibrian, City Councilwoman (District 8)
  • Trish DeBerry-Mejia, PR consultant and small business owner
  • Michael "Commander" Idrogo, perennial candidate
  • Napoleon Madrid
  • Sheila D. McNeil, City Councilwoman (District 2)
  • Julie Iris Oldham, perennial candidate
  • Rhett R. Smith, perennial candidate

Frontrunner status

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After the deadline to file passed, four candidates (Castro, Cibrian, McNeil and DeBerry-Mejia) were considered the frontrunners in the race. Polls showed Castro ahead by big margins, and some polls showed Castro winning outright without need for a runoff election. Second place was highly contentious, with Cibrian and DeBerry-Mejia trading off for second place.

Election day

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On May 9, 2009, the election for Mayor was held. Turnout was slightly higher in the May 2009 election than the May 2007 election, with 11.61% of registered voters casting a ballot in the 2009 election (as opposed to 10.16% in 2007). Also, more votes were cast during early voting than on election day (55,780 votes cast during early voting to 34,055 on election day.)

A majority of votes is required to win the office of Mayor of San Antonio. If no person earns a majority, the two top vote earners shall advance to a runoff election to decide. Mayoral elections are non-partisan.

San Antonio Mayor, 2009
Regular election, May 9, 2009
Candidate Votes % ±
Julian Castro 42,745 56.23%
Trish DeBerry-Mejia 22,031 28.98%
Diane G. Cibrian 6,181 8.13%
Sheila D. McNeil 2,962 3.90%
Rhett R. Smith 715 0.94%
Lauro Bustamante 441 0.58%
Julie Iris Oldham 385 0.51%
Michael "Commander" Idrogo 371 0.49%
Napoleon Madrid 188 0.25%
Turnout 76,019 9.83%*

* Vote percentage only include votes for San Antonio Mayor. The remaining 1.78 percent in the election voted for different constituencies, or did not cast a vote for Mayor of San Antonio

References

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