It’s because of her experience that Brigid understood how critical this situation was.  It’s because of her compassion for the working poor that she wanted to help and it’s because of her vast network of contacts that she was able to get something done quickly. That's why I am committed to helping Brigid win and I hope you will join me by signing up to volunteer, attending and event and/or ordering a yard sign!

My name is Julie Wickert. I’m a home-town Austin girl and a small business owner. I’m also privileged to be among Brigid Shea’s many friends here in Austin. One day, Brigid and I were talking about work and career. I learned then that her guiding principle in making career decisions is to always seek the spot where she can make the biggest difference. 

Adding to an already impressive list of endorsements, the Sierra Club announced their endorsement of Brigid Shea in the race for Precinct 2 Travis County Commissioner. Shea has an extensive track record on environmental issues, including starting the Texas chapter of Clean Water Action and spearheading Save Our Springs, the strongest water protection ordinance passed by citizen initiative in the country.

Sarah Bird is a nationally acclaimed author who calls Austin home.

"Many say that affordability is just too big a problem to fix. That it’s inevitable that Austin will keep growing and keep getting more expensive and that there’s nothing anyone can do about it. I remember when they were saying a version of that about Barton Springs. That growth is inevitable and there’s nothing anyone can do about it. Aren’t you all glad that Brigid Shea didn’t believe that back then?"

Austin NAACP Chapter President Nelson Linder explains why he is supporting Brigid:

This city is at a crossroads, there are a lot of folks here of all races and cultures and we are being left out. We need folks who do have integrity, who can’t be bought and paid for, who will stand firm and talk about the issues that affect our city, Brigid Shea is that person.

Continuing her call to end politics as usual, Travis County Commission Candidate Brigid Shea announced she had raised another $100 thousand in the latest fundraising period, some of it coming from former political opponents. Since the start of the campaign Shea has raised more than $200,000 from over 450 donors. 

“From the beginning I’ve said this campaign is a big tent. My contributors range from former political opponents to environmentalists and many in between. With so many important issues to work on in the community, we can’t afford to let ourselves be divided over personal disagreements. It’s crucial we have a civil dialogue and pursue opportunities to work together,” said Shea.

Throughout the course of my campaign I have talked about building a broad coalition of supporters and treating all persons with respect. In light of the ugly revenge politics that we are seeing in New Jersey involving Gov. Christie’s staff and the George Washington Bridge scandal, it is essential to reach out to people that we have differences with and find ways to work together. I have tried to do this in my own life over the years. For a time I thought I was done with politics, until four years ago when I made peace with one of my political “enemies,” Gary Bradley. It was such a cathartic thing to do, that I found myself willing to run for office again. By putting the past behind me I opened the path in front of me.

Austin, Texas — The Central Texas Building Trades Association voted last Thursday to endorse Former Austin City Council member Brigid Shea for Precinct 2 Travis County Commissioner. The endorsement adds to an already impressive list of Unions, elected officials and organizations that have decided to support Brigid in her run for Travis County Commissioner. The list includes Sen. Kirk Watson, Rep. Eddie Rodriguez, AFSCME Local 1624, the Austin Firefighters Association and Clean Water Action. 

Reiterating her stance on the importance of background checks for gun sales, Candidate for Precinct 2 Travis County Commissioner, Brigid Shea urged the Travis County Commissioners Court to require all persons selling guns at the Saxet Gun Show to conduct background checks in order to have their contract with Travis County renewed. This is not the first time Shea has publicly spoken in support of this requirement, emphasizing this position during the KUT candidate forum last month.

Long-time local community activist and leader, Paul Saldaña, and I are working together on a mentoring initiative to help young people learn how to exercise their civic power. We want to inspire a movement for voter participation among the youth in Travis County. According to the 2010 Census, about 153,000 of the 1 million-plus Travis County residents are 18 to 24 years old. That’s a lot of voting power just waiting to be harnessed! However, according to Travis County records, only about 35,000 voters 18 to 25 years old voted in the 2012 general election.

Read more about Brigid's thoughts on Youth Voter participation and what she wants to do to increase it.