By Jaime Kilpatrick
Staff Reporter
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All deadlines have passed and now it’s officially campaign season.
Four of the seven city council seats are up for election and both candidates for the city’s highest elected office have council experience.
Current City Council Place 6 John Thomaides and former council member Daniel Guerrero are seeking to fill the two-year mayor’s term.
Guerrero served on the council from May 2004 to Nov. 2008.
Voters will also choose three at-large council members including the expired Place 1 and 2 seats and the Place 6 seat vacated by Thomaides during his mayoral campaign.
The race for the council’s Place 1 seat between incumbent Kim Porterfield, retired airline pilot Dave Newman and Texas State student Griffin Spell was the only three-person race on the ballot for less than 24 hours.
Newman for filed for candidacy minutes before the 5 p.m., Aug. 24 deadline and Spell withdrew the following day.
Newman has since appointed Spell to be his campaign treasurer.
Newman said he chose Spell because he thinks he is a “very intelligent young man.”
“He’s got wisdom beyond his years,” Newman said. “He felt as I feel that all elections need to have a challenger.”
Newman said that his former treasurer, Daniel Praver, himself and Spell unanimously agreed to the replacement.
Newman ran unsuccessfully against incumbent Susan Narvaiz during the 2008 mayoral election.
Porterfield is the only council candidate seeking re-election to their current office and has served on council since Nov. 2007.
Candidates for Place 2 are current Planning and Zoning Commissioner Jude Prather and contract administrator Toby Hooper.
Contenders for Thomaides’ unexpired term are retired San Marcos Police Department Sgt. Rodney van Oudekerke and local filmmaker Shane Scott.
The City Clerk’s office conducted a drawing for candidates’ places on the ballot Tuesday morning to determine the order candidates will appear on the November ballot.
Hays County Elections Administrator Joyce Cowan said she is waiting to hear from all parties with ballot items and expects to have a ballot certified by the State of Texas early next week.
