Good Wednesday morning --

There is much, much more to come from us, but for now, three things.

1. Below is the full story from The Texan’s Brad Johnson on our sweeping victory in taking down Prop Q (the largest property tax increase in Austin history) last night.

2. I will join the #1 talk radio station in Austin at 8am (Todd and Oz) on KLBJ 590am this morning. Tune in locally or listen LIVE here.

3. Below I am re-posting our memo on our campaign from last night, so you can see how your financial support produced this victory.

» You can support our continued work here.

Thank you for everything.

• FANTASTIC STORY DETAILING OUR VICTORY

‘This is a Blowout Victory’: Austin Voters Stamp Out Tax and Spending Increase

Voters rejected Proposition Q after early vote by a 68 percent clip.

• Brad Johnson

The rubber match between the progressive Austin City Council and the collection of opposition organizations headlined by Save Austin Now (SAN) has gone the latter’s way.

Proposition Q is a voter-approval tax rate election (VATRE) worth $110 million, intended to close the $33 million deficit gap in the City of Austin’s budget.

The ballot language states the item is “for the purpose of funding or expanding programs intended to increase housing affordability and reduce homelessness; improve parks and recreation facilities and services; enhance public health services and public safety; ensure financial stability; and provide for other general fund maintenance and operation expenditures included in the fiscal year 2025-2026 budget as approved or amended by City Council.”

Though it was not the only spending item within the proposition, the headliner was the homelessness response appropriation.

This is the third time the two sides — the city’s dominant political establishment and the insurgent opposition made up of Austin’s few Republicans, Independents, and even Democrats — have grappled over a ballot proposition.

The first was the May 2021 reinstatement of the public camping and lying ban, a rebuke of the progressive city council headlined by then-Mayor Steve Adler and then-Councilman Greg Casar; 57 percent of voters, including 40 percent of Democrats, voted to reinstate the camping ban.

Playing into SAN’s favor at that time was the visceral nature of the council’s policy. Overnight, encampments cropped up on Austin’s boulevards, under its overpasses, and within its