Mayor Ron Nirenberg has officially announced his campaign for re-election, running for his fourth and final term. Nirenberg has held the position of mayor of San Antonio since 2017. In an Instagram post, Nirenberg said he plans to “run an aggressive campaign.” As of Thursday evening, three other candidates have filed applications to run for mayor: Ray Adam Basaldua, Christopher Longoria and Diana Flores Uriegas. Of these three candidates, Basaldua is the only one of the three who has run for mayor before in the 2021 election. If Mayor Nirenberg wins the election this upcoming May, he will be the first person since the 1980s to have served four consecutive terms as mayor of San Antonio. The last person to do so was Henry Cisneros. The deadline to run for mayoral candidacy is at 5 p.m. on Feb. 17, with the election taking place on May 6. 

On early Friday morning, Jan. 27, Greg Simmons, a sports anchor for KSAT 12, was arrested on DWI charges. After reportedly driving home from a bar, he was seen recklessly driving his vehicle at 20 mph. When pulled over by a Bexar County Sheriff’s Deputy, Simmons reportedly failed to perform parts of the sobriety test. He could not recite the alphabet or walk correctly, and rather than handing over his license to the officer, he handed over his credit card. When Simmons refused to take a breathalyzer test, the deputy had to request a blood draw warrant. According to court records, Simmons was arrested and charged with DWI. He was released on a personal recognizance bond of $1,000 that same day. San Antonio police make an average of 4,300 DWI arrests per year, which equates to approximately 83 arrests a week. In response to this, Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzalez is preparing to impose tighter restrictions on DWI plea bargains as of last month that would not allow leniency for anyone who has had prior drunk driving offenses, had caused an accident, or was in the extreme intoxication zone when arrested. 

On Saturday, Jan. 28, the San Antonio Police Department responded to a shooting at the Garden Bistro Bar, which occurred just before midnight. Two security guards stood outside the bar when a man walked up to them and opened fire on one of the guards. The second security guard returned fire, killing the suspect. The injured security guard was taken to the hospital in critical condition. Police officials say it is still unclear why the suspect opened fire, and they are currently still investigating. No names have been released. 

On Friday, Jan. 27, almost 200 people were sworn in at a naturalization ceremony in San Antonio. There were a total of 199 individuals from 43 countries, including Mexico, Egypt, Ireland and Jamaica.