52nd Mayor of Austin (2015-2023), Texas. Husband, dad, grandpa.
Austin, TX
Joined January 2014
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I’m outta here!
It’s been the privilege of a lifetime to serve as your mayor for eight years. Today I turn the reins over to your next mayor, @KirkPWatson. I wish him and his team well.
Thank you, Austin. I'm proud of what we’ve accomplished together. See you around town!
Early voting opens today in Austin and runs through Oct. 30. I'm voting YES on Props A and B for parks, pools, trails, and libraries, and NO on Prop I, a retread of an audit Austin voters already rejected in 2018.
Yes on A. Yes on B. No on I.
ALT Steve Adler smiling and pointing to his I Voted Early sticker next to a red Vote Aqui Here sign.
Join me at Chez Zee on Wednesday, Oct 21 for a Texas Author Happy Hour. I'll be talking about my book Hot Seat, Hot City: The Austin Mayor's Story with Kerry Tate. Happy hour at 6:00 PM, interview at 6:30. $15 ($7 for students) at chez-zee.com/events. Hope to see you there!
"AI shouldn't be something that just happens to us; it should be something whose development and use society helps shape."
My RealClearMarkets piece:
realclearmarkets.com/article…
My book, Hot Seat, Hot City:
mayoradler.com
ALT Downtown Austin skyline above Lady Bird Lake, with a railroad bridge in the foreground.
More than 1 million Texas voters were placed on suspense lists. That does not necessarily mean they are ineligible. I joined Bold & Blunt to discuss what is happening and what voters need to know.
Watch: washingtontimes.com/news/202…
Book: amzn.to/4flmeKg
I recently joined Adam Flagg on Austin Eras to talk about Austin, public service, and the stories behind Hot Seat — Hot City. Watch the full conversation: lnkd.in/p/g3nhMP9z
ALT Steve Adler recording an episode of the Austin Eras podcast with host Adam Flagg.
My Goodreads giveaway is live: 25 hardcover copies of Hot Seat — Hot City, free.
Foreword by @PeteButtigieg. Endorsed by 45+ U.S. mayors. #1 Amazon Best Seller in Local U.S. Politics.
Enter by Sept 30: goodreads.com/giveaway/show/…
ALT Hot Seat — Hot City book cover with #1 Amazon Best Seller badge
Hot Seat, Hot City ships tomorrow.
Join me in Austin:
9/8, 6:30 PM, First Light Books with Rep. Greg Casar
thethirdplace.is/event/mayor…
9/14, 7 PM, Birdhouse Books with Sarah Adler Hartman
withfriends.co/event/2906508…
Hot Seat, Hot City ships Tuesday.
Austin conversations and signings:
9/8, 6:30 PM, First Light Books with Rep. Greg Casar
thethirdplace.is/event/mayor…
9/14, 7 PM, Birdhouse Books with Sarah Adler Hartman
withfriends.co/event/2906508…
A memoir's problem: the author grades his own homework.
The book ends with words I didn't write — Rep. Casar's remarks on what you do for people who aren't in the room.
Ships 8/25: amazon.com/Hot-Seat-Austin-M…
"If you don't run, I don't want to hear you complaining about city hall again." — my wife, Dec. 2013.
30 days later I was a candidate. Ch. 6, HOT SEAT — HOT CITY.
Ships 8/25: amazon.com/Hot-Seat-Austin-M…
My political career began in 4th grade: class president on bigger lunches & a shorter school year. Wrote the superintendent, got a lecture on chain of command.
Chs. 2–5. Ships 8/25: amazon.com/Hot-Seat-Austin-M…
"If you look scared, they'll be scared" — FBI advice to me during the bombings. A leader's power.
Ch. 17: officeholders who run that power in reverse — fear as a political weapon.
Ships 8/25: amazon.com/Hot-Seat-Austin-M…
Fact-checkers found Austin's police "defunding" didn't raise crime. Correct — but we never defunded the police. The lie became the frame anyway.
Ch. 16, HOT SEAT — HOT CITY. Ships 8/25: amazon.com/Hot-Seat-Austin-M…
The best argument against local police helping ICE raids came from my chief: it makes the city LESS safe. Victims who fear deportation don't report crimes.
Ch. 15, HOT SEAT — HOT CITY. Ships 8/25: amazon.com/Hot-Seat-Austin-M…
Imagine Monopoly where one player can't roll until round 20. Everyone then treats him as an equal. He still loses.
No villain needed. Same rules for all. Fair game?
Ch. 14, HOT SEAT — HOT CITY. Ships 8/25: amazon.com/Hot-Seat-Austin-M…
Bermuda shorts on bikes, or riot gear? How police show up at a protest reveals their whole theory of the job.
The wrong choice helps the agitators.
Ch. 13, HOT SEAT — HOT CITY. Ships 8/25: amazon.com/Hot-Seat-Austin-M…
Austin's costliest election ever: fingerprints. Uber & Lyft spent $8–10M, then threatened to leave in 3 days if they lost.
They lost. They left. We built RideAustin.
Ch. 12, HOT SEAT — HOT CITY. Ships 8/25: amazon.com/Hot-Seat-Austin-M…
July 1, 2019: Austin woke to a sea of orange tents. They'd always been there — hidden where we don't want to see.
Austin finally SAW them.
Chs. 10–11, HOT SEAT — HOT CITY. Ships 8/25: amazon.com/Hot-Seat-Austin-M…
March 2020. My city manager: "The decision to cancel SXSW is yours alone to make."
Me: "I had no idea."
The loneliest 36 hours of my 8 years as mayor. Chapter 9 of HOT SEAT — HOT CITY.
Ships 8/25. Pre-order: amazon.com/Hot-Seat-Austin-M…
2018: a man mutters as I pass, "Worst mayor Austin's ever had."
Both sides wanted a better Austin. Both were right. Leading meant deciding anyway.
Ch. 8, HOT SEAT — HOT CITY. Ships 8/25: amazon.com/Hot-Seat-Austin-M…