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Bexar County voters will elect a new district attorney on Nov. 3, choosing between two major party candidates who agree on several major challenges facing the criminal justice system but offer different approaches to addressing them.
Democrat Luz Elena Chapa and Republican Ashley Foster discussed their priorities Wednesday during separate interviews on Texas Public Radio's "The Source."
The victor will replace retiring Democratic District Attorney Joe Gonzales and inherit an office saddled with a backlog of criminal cases, a sour relationship with local law enforcement, difficulties recruiting prosecutors and concerns about the handling of domestic violence cases.
The district attorney oversees felony prosecutions, makes decisions about criminal charges and plea agreements, and determines when eligible defendants should be offered alternatives to incarceration.
Chapa is a former justice on Texas' Fourth Court of Appeals, where she served for 13 years. She has practiced law for 26 years but has never worked as a criminal prosecutor. She argues that her judicial experience provides the perspective needed to reform the office.
Foster spent 11 years as a prosecutor in the Bexar County District Attorney's Office, handling cases involving white-collar crime and capital murder. She now works as a civil trial attorney in private practice. Foster says her prosecution experience would allow her to take a hands-on leadership role, including personally trying high-profile criminal cases.
Both candidates support retaining the death penalty, but they described somewhat different approaches to determining when prosecutors should seek capital punishment.
Chapa said she would establish a committee to review potential death penalty cases.
"That is an option to seek here in Texas. And that will be used very sparingly. There will be a committee formed. We will roundtable it. And making sure that we are only exercising that option in the most devastating and heinous of crimes," Chapa said.
Foster said she would consider the recommendations of trial prosecutors and senior staff but emphasized that the ultimate decision belongs to the elected district attorney.
"You need to look at the individual's background, their mental state and things of that nature. And ultimately, how I would filter those cases is I would listen to the trial team first because they're the ones who know the facts of the case," Foster said.
Foster said she would then consult senior prosecutors before making the final determination.
"Ultimately that will fall with me. That decision will fall with me because we can't always work with a committee because sometimes the committee can't be formed quickly enough to make decisions," she said.
Foster said she would consider personally prosecuting a death penalty case.
"I have handled capital murder cases, but I think when something's high profile, they need to know that the district attorney can come in and take care of business herself," she said.
"I would delight in seeking justice for victims," Foster added.
The candidates also offered different strategies for rebuilding the district attorney's office.
Chapa said 140 prosecutors have left the office over the past eight years, with approximately 40 positions currently vacant. She blamed some of the departures on inadequate salaries, excessive workloads and strained relationships with law enforcement.
"We are going to do a huge effort to bring back talent and keep talent. I know everyone currently in the DA's office is mission driven and they are committed to doing the work. So it is also streamlining processes with respect to the intake division and making sure that prosecutors are fully trained, make sure they are paid adequately in comparison to other counties of our size," Chapa said.
Foster also identified recruitment and retention as major priorities but stressed that additional funding may not be available. She said the office must become a more attractive workplace through better training, mentorship and stronger support for prosecutors.
"We're going to have a shining beacon of that office because you know you're going to get training, mentorship, support. You're going to have that office, the kind of place that people want to practice their law in, because they're going to be doing good and they're going to be happy doing it," Foster said.
Foster promised an aggressive timetable for addressing the backlog, beginning with an assessment of its causes during her first 30 days in office, followed by efforts to resolve those problems within 60 days.
Both candidates criticized aspects of the office's handling of domestic violence cases.
Chapa said she would reorganize the family violence division into a special victims unit, with additional leadership and training focused on trauma-informed prosecution.
"We need to make sure that victims are seen and heard. Thousands of cases have gone unprosecuted, and they've gone dismissed without being prosecuted, and some of those cases tragically have resulted in murder suicides," said Chapa.
Those claims about the number and consequences of dismissed cases were made by Chapa during the interview.
Foster proposed expanding the use of vertical prosecution, assigning a single attorney to handle certain cases from beginning to end.
"That means that one prosecutor is assigned to that case for the lifetime of the case, meaning that the victim knows exactly who they're dealing with every single time that they come in, that the prosecutor knows the facts," Foster said.
Both candidates support Bexar County's proposed diversion center, intended to redirect eligible people with mental illness or substance use disorders away from incarceration and toward treatment.
Chapa described herself as a strong supporter of the project and said she would advocate for additional funding.
"It shouldn't be a criminal crime or considered a crime to have a severe mental illness. So I think in cases in terms of criminal trespass, which we have seen time and time again, specifically in downtown, a Diversion Center will help alleviate that problem. And it will also allow an opportunity to treat people humanely, compassionately, and treat their mental illness and get them stabilized," Chapa said.
Foster also expressed support but said participation should be voluntary and programs should demonstrate measurable results.
"While I'm very much for them, I think that the individual needs to want to go into the diversion program and the diversion program needs to work. I am not in a position, nor are any of us here in Bear County in a position of luxury to throw good money after bad," Foster said.
The two candidates were also asked whether they would prosecute federal immigration agents accused of criminal conduct in Bexar County.
The question followed reports that the Harris County district attorney was considering charges against an ICE agent whose vehicle recently struck and seriously injured a man during an immigration enforcement operation.
Chapa said she would evaluate the evidence regardless of whether an accused person worked for a federal agency.
"But if there is evidence of a crime being committed in Bexar County, I will absolutely assess it and prosecute it to the furthest extent of the law," Chapa said.
She added that she would consider prosecutions on a case-by-case basis.
"I don't believe in blanket policies. But if you are wearing a blue uniform or a green uniform and you commit a crime here in Bexar County, you will be prosecuted," she said.
Foster gave a similar response when asked whether ICE agents would be subject to prosecution.
"Well, my job is to make sure that the law is enforced and if any individuals in Bexar County and they break the law, well then I'm going to enforce the law against them," she said.
Independent Jason Wolff is also running for Bexar County district attorney but was not included in "The Source" candidate interviews because he did not meet TPR's eligibility criteria for participation.
TPR determined participation in the Bexar County district attorney forum using a set of criteria intended to identify candidates who have demonstrated a significant level of public support and campaign capacity. Those criteria include documented campaign fundraising and expenditures, established campaign organization and independent news coverage, as well as whether they responded to a candidate questionnaire for our voter guide.
You can view more information about all three candidates in our TPR/San Antonio Report 2026 Voter Guide.
Early voting begins Oct. 19. Election Day is Nov. 3.
