Author: Susan O'Brien (Hoodline)
San Antonio City Councilwoman Adriana Rocha Garcia is setting her sights on the mayoral seat, becoming the third council member to throw her hat into the ring for the 2025 San Antonio mayor's race. Garcia, the first woman and South Side councilwoman to enter the race, plans to officially file her candidacy papers next week. Her decision was first reported in an exclusive interview with KSAT 12 News, where Rocha Garcia expressed her commitment to facing the city's upcoming challenges head-on. "Personally, I want to run because I want to help people, and it's going to be a difficult few years ahead for the City of San Antonio," Rocha Garcia said.
As San Antonio braces to confront a looming budget shortfall over the next two fiscal years, Rocha Garcia looks prepared to potentially leverage her background in uniting people and shaping a collective vision to guide the city through tough decisions ahead. This perspective was shared in comments Rocha Garcia made to the San Antonio Express-News, where she highlighted the importance of moving San Antonio forward, despite the financial reality. "There’s a lot of difficult times ahead, and I have the ability to bring groups of people together and move forward with a vision," she said. Federal pandemic relief is expected to dry up, and city sales tax revenues are down, two economic factors affecting San Antonio's financial landscape.
However, Rocha Garcia is not just focused on fiscal issues; she sees crime as the biggest obstacle facing the city, regardless of whether it has increased or not. "Whether it is increased or not, the perception alone of crime is enough to scare people," Rocha Garcia said, as reported by KSAT 12 News. The perception itself can be as detrimental as the reality, and Rocha Garcia appears to be aware of the weight this carries for the citizens of San Antonio.
Amidst a sizable field of candidates that includes fellow council members John Courage and Manny Pelaez, tech entrepreneur Beto Altamirano, and others, Rocha Garcia is looking to not only win the race but also to make history. She aims to significantly leverage her experiences as a single mother and daughter of Spanish-speaking parents and her past endeavors, such as leading the push for a City Council code of conduct, which was instigated by a series of reprimands within the council. She is also already planning ahead, having named Sarah McLornan treasurer of her mayoral campaign and is poised to seriously kick-off her campaign following November’s presidential election, as mentioned in her statement to the San Antonio Express-News.
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