As Kathie Tovo stood on a Scholz Garten picnic bench to address her supporters, the election day numbers gave reason for celebration if not outright victory. With all precincts reporting, Tovo pulled in 46.55%, well ahead of the 32.94% of incumbent Randi Shade.
“Thank all of you for being here,” Tovo told the jubilant crowd, “it’s been a really exciting eight weeks, and a really successful result. And those results reflect that the people of Austin really want to see a change in direction.” Tovo emphasized that “it’s not over yet,” and that her supporters should get ready for “four more weeks” of work until the June runoff. She reiterated how thankful she was for all the support she has received, concluding, “Please don’t go away – I need your help to continue, I need your support.”
This article appears in May 13 • 2011.
