San Antonio elects Filipino Democratic Candidate Gina Ortiz Jones as Mayor
WRITTEN BY LISA YANG | June 14, 2025
photo by Amber Esparza for the San Antonio Report
On June 7th, 2025, Gina Ortiz Jones was elected as the next mayor of San Antonio, succeeding Mayor Ron Nirenberg as he finishes his term in 2025. Mayor-elect Jones is a first-generation San Antonio native who served as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Air Force and as the 27th Under Secretary of the Air Force from 2021 to 2023. She will be the first openly LGBTQ+ mayor in San Antonio's history. Her victory is especially memorable as an underdog story amid the currently hostile political climate in the U.S., particularly in Texas.
Jones defeated Rolando Pablos, the conservative candidate in the race and a notable ally of major Texas GOP leaders, with a 54% majority. She was favored to win by a 10% margin over Pablos in the May 3rd elections. As of June 2nd, Pablos had major donors backing him with a reported $1.5 million campaign budget, while Jones was supported by smaller groups and individuals, raising $825,000, according to the San Antonio Campaign Finance and Texas Ethics Commission.
Gina Ortiz Jones represents a glimmer of hope for many in the San Antonio area, as key issues such as immigration, reproductive rights, racial tensions, and same-sex marriage remain contentious under the current conservative administration. According to her campaign website, she was raised by a single mother of two who worked as a public school teacher at Harlandale ISD. Ortiz is a first-generation American—her mother immigrated from the Philippines—making her the second San Antonio mayor of Southeast Asian descent, after current mayor Ron Nirenberg, who is also part Filipino.
Growing up in San Antonio, Ortiz attended John Jay High School and received federal assistance for low-income families. She attended college on an Air Force ROTC scholarship and served in Iraq as an Air Force officer. She returned to San Antonio when her mother was diagnosed with colon cancer and continued to serve at Fort Sam Houston.
Mayor-elect Gina Ortiz Jones represents many of us who live in San Antonio—whether we are first-generation, LGBTQ+, Asian, military, women, or simply residents who want the best for our city. She brings a breath of fresh air to the overwhelmingly straight, white, male-dominated landscape of political leadership in Texas. Her lead in the polls during May (AAPI Heritage Month) and her win being confirmed in June (LGBTQ+ Pride Month) make her victory all the more special.
Like the first song that played when she was announced as the next mayor of San Antonio, even in these trying times, we will need to “keep on dancing at the Pink Pony Club.”
