Two time congressional candidate and former U.S. Air Force undersecretary Gina Ortiz Jones officially announced her candidacy for mayor on Thursday.
Jones is a San Antonio native who served as an Air Force intelligence officer and eventually achieved the rank of captain while on active duty.
Jones explained in a statement why she’s running for mayor.
“As our state and our country face an uncertain future, we need a mayor with a fresh perspective who will put San Antonians first and ensure that every resident of this community is secure, prosperous, and has access to the resources and programs they need to thrive,” she said. “I am running for mayor because I believe that we all deserve economic opportunity, affordable housing, and a safe city to call home. I am thrilled to announce my candidacy, and I am ready to earn your vote.”
She ran as a Democrat and lost twice for Texas’ 23rd Congressional District in 2018 and 2020.
Her announcement came one day after District 6 Councilmember Melissa Cabello Havrda announced her own candidacy for mayor.
Jones graduated from John Jay High School and attended college on an ROTC scholarship before joining the Air Force.
Under the George W. Bush administration, she was deployed to Iraq, where she supported close air support missions.
After leaving active duty, she returned to work as an intelligence analyst for U.S. Africa Command and later joined the Defense Intelligence Agency. In November 2016, she served under the U.S. Trade Representative during the Obama administration and continued in that role during the Trump administration until 2017, when she decided to run for Congress.
