Taylor Makes History As First African American Mayor Of San Antonio
When voting finally got underway Tuesday in a packed city council chamber, the top two candidates out of the four vying for the interim mayor position became clear: Ivy Taylor from District 2 and Ray Lopez from District 6, who secured all of the votes.
District 5 councilwoman Shirley Gonzales and District 8 Councilman Ron Nirenberg, both of whom are rookie council members, did not receive any votes.
In the initial round of voting, Taylor garnered four votes to Lopez's two. The second round tilted Taylor's direction even more, this time with a vote split of 5-3.
That's when voting for the interim mayor to succeed Julián Castro, who starts his job at the Department of Housing and Urban Development Monday, took a twist.
Lopez surprised everyone and withdrew his name from consideration, telling his council colleagues that a team is needed to move San Antonio forward.
"To sit here and argue over who's in and who's out and who's better and who's not, the reality is we are all capable of doing this. We are all committed to San Antonio," Lopez said to applause.
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http://tpr.org/post/taylor-makes-history-first-african-american-mayor-san-antonio