I never really thought there was anything to this, but in case you needed an official denial, here you go.
Sen. Leticia Van de Putte
Democrat Leticia Van de Putte wants to put rumors to rest: she has absolutely no intention of running for mayor of San Antonio come next year.
Van de Putte, a long-time state senator from San Antonio, attempted again on Tuesday to put to bed any chatter that she’s eyeing a run for mayor as a backup plan if her long-shot bid for lieutenant governor against Republican Dan Patrick doesn’t pan out.
“Under no circumstance will I be running for mayor of San Antonio,” she said in a short interview. “I will be in the Senate come January 2015.”
[…]
San Antonio Express-News columnist Brian Chasnoff first fanned the flames of a potential Van de Putte run for mayor in a piece last month highlighting how the senator’s name was being tossed around by local politicos. The column also carried a firm dismissal from Van de Putte.
But that apparently did little to persuade some gossip hounds, Van de Putte said, specifically noting that she’s heard murmurs out of San Antonio occasionally and also has had folks mention to her informally that “lobbyists in Austin” have broached the subject.
Rick Casey has also mentioned this possibility, citing Chasnoff in doing so. I noted it as well but didn’t give it much thought, figuring it was something that someone may have said once that was now being remembered and speculated about by someone else. It’s often wise to take a “you never know” posture with this sort of thing, but that’s as clear a denial as you’re likely to see. So let’s put this to rest and move along.
One thing we can move along to is the one person we know for sure that is running for SA Mayor next year, and that’s State Rep. Mike Villarreal. Since the election will be in May and that’s towards the end of the legislative session, he would likely be too busy campaigning to spend much time doing his legislative job. So, he plans to resign after the 2014 election in order to concentrate on his next campaign.
State Rep. Mike Villarreal will stay on the Nov. 4 ballot in order to avoid a party appointment and allow district voters to choose a new representative.
Villarreal, who is running uncontested, will step down before the 84th Legislature begins in January 2015, prompting a special election for House District 123, according to a news release. Villarreal will run for the San Antonio mayoral spot in May 2015.
“I believe that the most democratic and transparent process is to allow all of the voters of District 123 to choose the person to represent them in the Texas Capitol,” Villarreal said.
If he resigned by Aug. 21, the Texas democrat precinct chairs in his district would appoint a candidate for the November election.
His full statement is here. That seems like as good a way as any to approach this. He’ll be missed in the Legislature. Best of luck with the Mayoral race, Rep. Villarreal.