El Paso City Council District 1 election going to runoff

Update: Brian Kennedy and Analisa Cordova Silverstein will head to a runoff election for the El Paso City Council District 1 position in December.

Kennedy received about 42 percent of the vote while Cordova Silverstein received about 25 percent. Since none of the candidates got more than 50 percent of the vote, the two candidates will go into a runoff election.

EL PASO, Texas -- The El Paso City Council District 1 has new boundaries since current Representative Peter Svarzbein, who has termed out, won the seat. Six candidates are in the race to replace him.

A seventh name - Freddy Klayel-Avalos - will appear on the ballot, although he withdrew from the race.

Dave Jones Jr., Brian Kennedy, Analisa Cordova Silverstein, Deliris Montañez Berrios, Lauren Ferris, and Erin Tague still vie to represent the district.

The candidates

Jones is a retired U.S. Army Major who has experience working with local democratic organizations. Jones wants to be more accessible to constituents and hold more community meetings.

Ferris is a former Assistant City Attorney of seven years. Ferris said she has a better understanding of how city government runs, and will be ready immediately if elected.

Tague is a former project manager who believes she is the most conservative candidate in the race. Tague believes in limited government and free enterprise.

Montañez Berrios is a former Customs and Border Protection Agent who unsuccessfully ran against U.S. Representative Veronica Escobar in March. Montañez Berrios said she will not be influenced by either political party and will work for constituents.

Kennedy is a U.S. Army Veteran and former Vice President of KHEY. Kennedy told ABC-7 the first thing "is get a grip on the budget. I mean the budget has kind of gotten out of control. We’re spending on a lot of things that aren’t necessarily needed to be spent on. And I think we need more than two days to go over the budget. It’s a billion dollar budget, and they go over it in two days and pass it.”

Cordova Silverstein has almost 20 years of experience in government, non-profit, and business leadership. Cordova Silverstein told ABC-7, “If elected, what I want to do is make sure that district one gets its fair share of the tax money in our investments and improving our traffic infrastructure, our streets, providing money for our police and our firefighters, and improving our parks.”