San Antonio is officially moving its city municipal elections to November. In a tight 6-5 vote, the City Council approved the measure, moving the vote from May to December in odd-numbered years.

The proposal passed after hours of public comment on Thursday, December 18. Proponents, including Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones and civil rights icon Dolores Huerta, hope that the move will increase voter turnout and engagement in local politics.

“Texas, like other states, has not fulfilled its potential,” said Huerta during the meeting. “Voting in Texas is far less than other states, and especially when it comes to voting of the Latino community. So somewhere we must make voting a habit in Texas. The challenge for political leaders is to make voting a positive habit to feed democracy, like eating is a habit to nourish our physical bodies.”

Those in support also noted that the change has economic advantages and could save the city between $800,000 and $1 million in off-election years by aligning races with higher turnout state and federal elections.

Those against the election maneuver argued that the change would leave school trustee and bond votes alone on the May ballot. Marina Alderete Gavito and Marc Whyte were among the councilmembers voting against the measure, saying the voting was rushed and made without adequate public input.

“What voters say should be the final word. If this council were to move forward on this today, we would all be without any voter participation, giving ourselves six more months in office," said Whyte.

The election move was made possible by the Texas Legislature passing the little-noticed Senate Bill 1494. The bill required local governments to make the change by the end of 2025. Dallas approved November city elections earlier in the year.

San Antonio's new election dates now put the city in line with other major Texas metros. Houston holds November city elections in odd-numbered years, and Austin holds them in even-numbered years.