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The mayoral race in New Braunfels will go to a runoff after city officials reversed course and said the city’s charter conflicts with the Texas Constitution, according to a statement from the city.
The city initially said Michael French, a former council member, had won the race with a plurality of the vote over incumbent Mayor Neal Linnartz. But officials later determined that state law requires a majority for offices with terms longer than two years. The mayor’s term in New Braunfels is three years.
The issue emerged after the May 2 election, when results showed French leading and the city initially declared him the winner. Linnartz publicly conceded.
Unofficial results show French received the most votes with 3,667, or about 49%. Linnartz followed with roughly 38%. Two other candidates split the remaining votes.
Because no candidate reached a majority, the top two vote-getters will now advance to a runoff.
City officials said the determination followed notice from outside legal counsel about the conflict between local and state law. Under the Texas Constitution, state law supersedes city charter provisions when they are in conflict.
City Attorney Valeria Acevedo said the situation required further legal review before moving forward.
“This situation stems from a conflict between our City Charter and the Texas Constitution,” Acevedo said in the city’s statement. “The Constitution clearly requires a majority vote for offices with terms longer than two years.”
She said once the issue was fully analyzed, it became clear a runoff election was legally required.
The city said it understands the confusion and concern this may cause for voters and plans to seek additional review from an outside attorney to confirm the interpretation.
New Braunfels officials will now work with county election authorities to schedule the runoff, and details on timing and voting will be announced once finalized, according to the city.
