Texas CD-37 · Run-Off May 26, 2026
Because Austin and Travis County have had the same leadership for over 30 years — and this is what they've gotten you.
The Record
Austin used to be one of the most livable cities in America. Affordable. Safe. Full of opportunity. Then the same party took over City Hall, the Travis County Commissioners Court, and the DA's office — and held them for three decades. The results speak for themselves.
In 2020, Austin's Democrat City Council slashed police funding by $142 million — 32.6% — in a single vote. The result? Austin shattered its all-time homicide record in 2021 with 89 murders. Residents paid the price while politicians patted themselves on the back.
Source: Austin Bulldog / Austin American-Statesman, 2021
After decades of Democrat leadership, Austin hit its highest murder count in over 60 years. The city that once prided itself on being 'Keep Austin Weird' became 'Keep Austin Dangerous.' Soft-on-crime DA José Garza took office in 2021 and immediately began dismissing cases and prosecuting police officers instead of criminals.
Source: Austin American-Statesman, Sept 2021
Between 2020 and 2024, Austin's homeless population nearly doubled — from 3,194 to 6,358 people living on the streets on any given day. The City Council decriminalized camping in 2019, turning parks, underpasses, and sidewalks into tent cities. Taxpayers funded millions in 'solutions' that made the problem worse.
Source: Austin ECHO Point-in-Time Count, 2024
You now need over $100,000 a year just to live comfortably in Austin — a city that used to be affordable for working families. Home values in Travis County hit a median of $493,449 in 2026. Meanwhile, the Travis County Commissioners Court approved a 9.12% property tax rate increase in 2025. Working families are being taxed and priced out of the city they built.
Source: KXAN / Travis CAD / Travis County, 2025–2026
In 2022, 245 Travis County residents died from accidental fentanyl overdose — more than twice the number killed in car crashes. Since 2019, accidental drug deaths have tripled in Travis County. Open borders and sanctuary city policies have made Austin a distribution hub for cartel-supplied fentanyl. Democrat leadership has no answer.
Source: Travis County / Texas Tribune, 2024
Between 2020 and 2023, at least 271,412 people moved OUT of Travis County — more than moved in. For the first time in 20 years, Travis County saw net population loss. The people who built Austin are leaving because they can no longer afford to stay — and the ones left behind are paying for failed progressive experiments.
Source: Austin Monitor / U.S. Census Data, 2024
Austin's Democrat City Council tried to push through a 20% property tax increase in November 2025 via Proposition Q. Voters rejected it in a landslide — a rare moment of accountability. But the damage is already done: years of reckless spending, bloated budgets, and zero fiscal discipline have left Austin residents with one of the highest tax burdens in Texas.
Source: Austin American-Statesman / Texas Policy Research, Nov 2025
Austin and Travis County have been run by Democrats for over three decades. The same party. The same ideology. The same results. Higher taxes, more crime, more homeless, more drugs, more people leaving. At what point do you stop blaming everyone else and look at who's been in charge?
Source: Travis County Election History
"The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results."
Austin has voted the same way for 30 years. The same party. The same politicians. The same failed ideas. The same results. What do you have to lose by trying something different?
You can't keep electing the same people and expect Austin to get better. It's time for a change — and Lauren B. Peña is that change.
The Fix
Lauren isn't a career politician. She's a survivor, a mother of six, and a woman who has lived the consequences of failed government. She knows what's broken — and she knows how to fix it.
Lauren will push to fully fund Austin PD, end the war on police, and support legislation that holds DA José Garza accountable. Criminals should fear consequences — not the other way around.
Lauren will work with ICE and federal law enforcement to end Travis County's de facto sanctuary status. Illegal aliens who commit crimes will be deported — not released back onto Austin streets.
Compassion without accountability is just enabling. Lauren supports treatment-first shelters, enforced anti-camping ordinances, and mental health investment — not handing out tents and calling it a solution.
Lauren will fight federal spending that drives inflation and push for property tax relief. Austin families shouldn't need a six-figure income just to survive in the city they grew up in.
245 Travis County residents died from fentanyl in one year. Lauren's SAFE NIGHTS Act and her commitment to border security will cut off the cartel supply chains killing our neighbors.
Lauren will push for full audits of city and county spending, transparency in DA prosecution data, and term limits so career politicians can't entrench themselves for 30 years and call it leadership.
From Lauren
I grew up in Austin. I went to school here. I raised my six children here. I watched this city transform from a place of opportunity into a place where working families can barely survive — and the people in charge keep asking for more of your money while delivering less of everything you need.
I survived human trafficking. I survived a system that failed me. And I rebuilt my life through faith, hard work, and the belief that this country still works when the right people are fighting for it.
The establishment doesn't want me in Washington. I don't have their money, their connections, or their willingness to stay quiet. What I have is the truth, the story, and the people.
Austin deserves better. Travis County deserves better. Your family deserves better. Give me the chance to prove it.