Gina Jones Becomes the First Female Asian American Mayor in San Antonio
On Saturday, Gina Ortiz Jones, a former Air Force under secretary, won the San Antonio mayor’s election and made history becoming the first openly gay and female Asian American mayor of San Antonio. Her election was a huge milestone for not just San Antonio, but also for Texas, a conservative state.
During the election, she faced Rolando Pablos, a Mexican immigrant who was known to have close connections with the Republican governor of Texas, Greg Abbott. Although Mr. Pablos technically claimed to be nonpartisan, he did not deny his relationships with Greg Abbott and other conservative leaders in Texas.
After winning, Ms. Jones told her group of supporters and voters, “San Antonio showed up and showed out.” She continued, “We reminded them that our city is about compassion and it’s about leading with everyone in mind. So I look forward for being a mayor to all.” As mayor, she is expected to use her compassionate leadership to practice by implementing policies that help elevate the whole community.
Throughout the election, Ms. Jones continuously and compassionately campaigned for more affordable housing, expanding early childhood education, as well as creating working-programs for those who are inexperienced. Additionally, according to the New York Times, “Ms. Jones said a priority would be tackling poverty in a city (San Antonio) where nearly 20 percent have lived below the poverty line…”
Education is a big part of Ms. Jones’s plan for improving San Antonio because it was part of her upbringing. Her mother, an educator, immigrated from the Philippines in the 1970s before raising Ms. Jones and her sister all by herself. Every week, her mother would drive to a city two and a half hours away to teach at a school and provide for her daughters. Her mom’s work ethic and hard work as a single parent was greatly admired by Ms. Jones. “‘That (her mother’s work ethic) was something that she always instilled on me.'” Her mom’s experience helped shape her focus to working families and improving access to education and healthcare.
In addition, Ms. Jones was a bright scholar. In 1999, she left San Antonio to go to Boston University after receiving an Air Force R.O.T.C. scholarship. She later graduated and earned degrees from both the University of Kentucky and the U.S. Army School of Advanced Military Studies. Later on in 2018 and 2020, she tried but failed to run for the congressional seat in southern Texas. But just one year later, President Biden nominated her to become the under secretary of the U.S. Air Force.
Now, she is one of the first Asian American female to become a mayor in San Antonio, a culturally diverse city. “I want to make sure that we are a city that is serving everybody.” said the newly elected mayor of San Antonio.
