Brittany Kelley
KYLE — Kyle City Council formally accepted the resignation of Kyle City Council member Claudia Zapata at its Oct. 5 meeting.
Zapata submitted her resignation to the city secretary Friday, Sept. 25, with an effective date of Oct. 3. However, she is still required to serve until a qualified candidate fills the vacancy. If she chooses not to, she will relinquish her salary. Similarly, if Zapata moves out of the city, she will no longer be qualified to serve and will not continue in her position.
City attorney Aimee Alcorn-Reed explained in her presentation that, according to state law, the city must hold an election to fill the seat no later than Jan. 31, 2027, on either the uniform election date, with adequate time to call for an election, or within 120 days of vacancy. The next available date is Dec. 12, said Alcorn-Reed, which is the uniform run-off election.
With an election held Dec. 12, the earliest date a candidate can be qualified is Dec. 23, though if there is a run-off, the qualification would not be until January.
Prior to the vote, council members Zapata and Lauralee Harris, as well as Mayor Yvonne Flores-Cale spoke.
Zapata first addressed rumors that she accepted a job out of state, emphasizing that Kyle is her home.
“As a child, I experienced frequent injustice and decided very young that I would dedicate my life to fixing the systems that allowed people to be hurt or left behind. I shared my life around becoming the public servant I needed as a child,” she shared. “There was still so much more I wanted to do, which is why I refuse to describe my resignation simply as a choice … For the past 11 months, I have been the target of a sustained harassment and dehumanization campaign.”
The council member went on to quote threats and malicious messages she claims to have received during her time, adding that others on the dais have let the harassment continue.
“I leave Kyle City Council with grief, anger, tremendous disappointment, but also with pride in the positive work that we have done here together, despite the hate that we’ve faced. I am grateful to every resident who trusted me, who challenged me honestly, who worked beside me or reminded me that the ugliest voices were never the entirety of this community. My hope is that Kyle chooses to learn something from what has happened here,” she concluded to a round of applause.
Sharing her experience with bullying was Flores-Cale, who recalled a time she was at the end of a racist remark and an Urban Dictionary word that was attributed to her.
She noted that Zapata’s allegations should be taken seriously, but that claims need to be distinguished from facts.
“The city of Kyle is not a political referee. It should not decide which resident’s criticism is appropriate, which political opinion is acceptable or which side of a disagreement is right and the city should certainly not label a resident’s conduct criminal, without the facts and the appropriate legal process to support that conclusion … That is why council member [Courtney] Goza and I are asking that available information concerning these allegations be properly reviewed and that any relevant city records be preserved,” said the mayor.
The city and Kyle Police Department have been contacted, she continued, and asked whether any reports or records exist and whether there is information that should be reviewed by the appropriate law enforcement agency. From there, the authorities will determine the outcome. She noted that she will support the warranted result, but she will “not call criticism a crime and I will not call an allegation a proven fact and I will not dismiss a serious allegation simply because it has not yet been proven. We can do better than choosing between those extremes.”
Concluding her speech, Flores-Cale stated that this is how Zapata, the residents, council and the integrity of the city are protected.
“I am disgusted and deeply embarrassed by you doubling down on what you just stated,” said Zapata, adding that she never wanted to file criminal charges as she knows that “there is nothing criminal, per se, that has happened, but something doesn’t have to be criminal for it to be wrong.”
The final council member to speak was Harris, who acknowledged her background working at a domestic violence shelter. She shared a story of a victim returning to her apartment, sure that the man would not hurt her. The man arrived and shot her and the person helping her, killing them both.
“We cannot put up with the kind of treatment that has been exhibited in the community by a minority. Unfortunately, we need to look at ourselves closely and think about what encourages this behavior and support the women who are trying to escape it,” Harris stressed.
This cumbersome environment is the same reason she has chosen to not run for reelection, she said.
Although not always agreeing, Harris stated that she has always admired Zapata, noting that she always came with sound, researched arguments and presented them eloquently.
Harris then motioned to accept Zapata’s resignation, passing 7-0.
The next item was to call a special election Dec. 12 to fill Zapata’s District 3 vacancy.
“It is our recommendation to continue to put this election on this date because we already have the funding for it,” said Alcorn-Reed.
Locations for early and Election Day voting have not been finalized, but Kyle City Hall and the Hays County Elections Office will be used, along with others.
Voting dates and times are as follows for early voting:
• From 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Nov. 30, to Friday, Dec. 4.
• From noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 5.
• From 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Dec. 7, and Tuesday, Dec. 8
Election Day voting will be Saturday, Dec. 12.
The city of Kyle began taking applications Tuesday, Oct. 6. Applications will be accepted until 5 p.m. Monday, Nov. 2, with a drawing for ballot order held Thursday, Nov. 5.
Council member Marc McKinney asked whether someone currently on the ballot can instead file for the District 3 seat.
“Our understanding is that if you are currently on the ballot, it is too late to remove your name from the ballot. So, you can announce that you are withdrawing. You could register to run for the other seat; however, if you win the seat you’re currently on the ballot for, that withdrawal is not effective and you can take [the original seat you applied for]. That makes this a little bit murky and confusing.
“Then, if you end up in the runoff as an applicant currently [running] for [the original] seat, but you’re also on the ballot for the special election, you can’t be on the ballot twice at the same election. It would be too late to withdraw from the special election and so, you would have to withdraw from the runoff.
“We’re looking into what happens if somebody who makes the runoff then withdraws from the runoff because that’s not something we’ve ever dealt with,” said Alcorn-Reed.
Council approved the special election unanimously.
