Bexar County's Southside voted to retain its county commissioner, but Rebeca Clay-Flores’ 47% wasn’t enough to prevent a runoff.
The Precinct 1 incumbent will face Amanda Gonzalez, a former director for Blue Cares, the charitable arm of the San Antonio Police Officers’ Association.
Clay-Flores commissioner out-raised and nearly outran all her competitors despite challenges from organized operations like the Deputies Sheriff’s Association of Bexar County.
Clay-Flores amassed a political war chest of more than $500,000 — a far cry from her 2020 run when she ran as an underdog on a shoestring budget.
In her first race, she broke down barriers after defeating longtime commissioner Sergio "Chico" Rodriguez — becoming the first woman of color on the court.
The winner of the Precinct 1 Democratic Primary runoff will face Republican Lina Prado in November. Prado, who ran unopposed in the GOP primary, is a senior supply chain manager at Boeing who serves on the city's Airport Advisory Board.
Precinct 3 Commissioner Grant Moody will be the Republican candidate for the race this November.
The victory came after a high-dollar campaign. Moody's challenger, Chris Schuchardt, owns a trucking company, and took out loans of more than $360,000 in the race, according to campaign filings.
Schuchardt also ran against Mayor Ron Nirenberg last year – reportedly spending $70,000 of his own money in that race.
Schuchardt said he wanted a "Republican revolution in Bexar County," and he criticized Moody for voting with Democratic colleagues so often. He said he had never considered public service until police-reform advocates managed to get the Justice Charter on the ballot.
“The insane 'ustice' charter amendment,” said Schuchardt’s website. “Chris felt compelled to get off the sidelines and fight to save the city from these radical pro-abortion, pro-drug, and anti-police policies.”
He spent his campaign saying Moody wasn’t Republican enough. But despite the close race, it appeared his revolution will have to wait.
Moody spent more than $281,000 defending himself from the upstart rival, boasting of his conservative bona fides with endorsements from Sen Ted Cruz and Gov. Greg Abbott.
The incumbent hoped to add a full term to his resume in November. He came to power in 2022, after Trish Deberry left the seat to run for county judge.
Susan Korbel ran unopposed for the Democratic nomination for the seat, setting the stage for a rematch from 2022.
Korbel founded a consumer and voter polling research organization, Core Research, in 1989.
Precinct 3 is often thought of as a conservative stronghold, encompassing north central San Antonio as far south as parts of Alamo Heights and north of 1604.
