Austin mayoral debate: 5 things we learned from the candidates

The American-Statesman helped moderate an Austin mayoral debate at KVUE News on Tuesday night. All six candidates appeared: Anthony Bradshaw, Phil Brual, Celia Israel, Gary Spellman, Jennifer Virden and Kirk Watson.

Here are five key takeaways from the debate:

Celia Israel won't be mansplained

Israel, a state representative, watched helplessly last year with fellow Texas Democrats as conservative state lawmakers approved greater restrictions on abortion access. As mayor, she said she will defend Austin women who want an abortion, though the city is limited in what it can do.

That drew an anti-abortion response from Bradshaw.

More:Here's who is on the ballot in Austin's mayor, City Council races

"I've never seen a safe abortion, not one," he said.

Israel got worked up.

"In the nine years I've been in the Texas Legislature, I've had enough mansplaining to last me a lifetime," Israel said. "Mr. Bradshaw doesn't know what it's like to live in fear, to not even want to get pregnant at this time. It's a sad commentary on where our society is today."

Israel's campaign team seized on the moment by posting her response on Twitter.

Kirk Watson cannot predict the future

Watson, who was Austin's mayor from 1997 to 2001, was asked what he'd do differently looking back to prepare the city for success.

"That's a hard question because we had so much success," he said. "But if I was going to do one thing differently, it's to be able to predict the future."

Watson said decisions that made East Austin more attractive, such as establishing a zoning overlay and moving the airport, led to displacement and gentrification. But, he said, he could not have predicted those outcomes.

"I wish we could have been able to predict the future so maybe we could have done some things in that moment and time," he said.

Do as they say, not as they do

Although most of the candidates say they support a more robust public transportation system to ease traffic and combat climate change, the majority of them rarely use public transportation now.

When was the last time they took public transportation?

"Probably just before the pandemic," Watson said.

"It's been a while," Virden said.

Israel said she took a bus from the airport during the pandemic.

Spellman asked, "Does Uber count?"

For Bradshaw, it was about three months ago. Brual, a University of Texas student, said he took public transportation a week ago.

The student gives lessons

Brual, at only 21, is by far the youngest candidate. And he thinks that plays to his advantage.

He said he identities with the struggling Austinite by working three jobs and going to class. He told a story about his modest resources: A doorknob at the apartment he shares with roommates is currently held in place with duct tape.

"It's small things like that that allow me to stand above my fellow competitors," he said.

He spoke critically of Project Connect, the $7 billion transit initiative that voters approved in 2020. The cost estimate for just the light rail portion of the project has nearly doubled to over $10 billion.

Brual said that he'd go back to voters to see if they still want it, and he believes that they do not.

"If they still want it, go for it," he said. "But I gladly guarantee the people of Austin do not want that plan anymore."

Hotels for homeless not a hit

Under Mayor Steve Adler, Austin has bought four hotels to convert into housing for people experiencing homelessness. None of the candidates seemed too set on continuing that plan.

"I would have other preferences," Israel said.

"Absolutely not," Virden said.

Watson said the hotels can play a role in the city's homelessness response. "But they shouldn't be the sole way we're addressing the issue."

Spellman, Brual and Bradshaw said they don't like the strategy.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: 5 things we learned from the Austin mayoral debate