SAN ANTONIO — Kimberly Mata-Rubio – whose 10-year-old daughter, Lexi, was killed at Robb Elementary in May 2022, spurring Kimberly to political action – is taking her activism one step further by running for mayor of Uvalde.
Mata-Rubio launched a campaign website this week, and city officials said she has officially filed for candidacy in what will be a special election set for November. So far, only she and Cody Smith – who served as mayor from 2008 to 2012 – are set to be on the ballot.
Mata-Rubio announced her intention on Twitter last month, sharing a promise of action. The post was accompanied with a screenshot of a newspaper article announcing her plans to seek the mayor's seat.
"I am still your mom. I will honor your life with action," she wrote. "This is only the beginning."
Mata-Rubio has made several trips to Austin in the wake of the Robb shooting, when 19 kids and two teachers were killed while law enforcement remained in a hallway for more than 70 minutes. When the Legislature failed to advance a bill that would have raised the age to legally purchase semi-automatic rifles, she joined other supporters of the measure in decrying the inaction, holding signs and chanting for the bill to be heard on the floor.
"This isn't over," she said at time. "We will regroup, re-strategize and come back stronger."
In September she met with U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz to ask him to support a federal ban on semi-automatic weapons--a meeting she later said lasted mere minutes while Cruz countered with other school safety ideas like armed security.
Current Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin announced plans to step down and run for state office, and a special election has been set for November for residents to pick who will fill out the final year of his term.
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