José Garza, Jeremy Sylestine face off in Travis County District Attorney race

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- After a contentious lead up to the Democratic primary election for Travis County District Attorney, incumbent José Garza faces off with challenger Jeremy Sylestine on Super Tuesday.

Garza, who took office in 2021, has campaigned on his office's progressive reforms targeting changes to the juvenile justice system, the creation of gun violence prevention programs and more options for mental health diversion. He has also reminded voters that his office has increased the number of sexual assault convictions and lost fewer murder trials, compared to the previous administration.

Sylestine, a defense attorney who previously worked as a prosecutor in the office, argues Garza has not prosecuted violent crime aggressively enough. He has promised voters to take more cases to jury trials and rely less on plea deals. Plus, he wants to implement strategies to clear a backlog of more than 6,000 pending felony cases.

Garza has accused his challenger of taking "right-wing money" and "parroting MAGA talking points" -- with Sylestine responding by telling voters he has been a life-long Democrat but his message is appealing to voters in both parties.

Last week, the Garza campaign sent a cease and desist letter to an entity called Saving Austin, which was distributing flyers and texts urging people to call Garza’s office and ask him to “stop cutting plea deals” with “monsters.” The letter also accuses the group of breaking Texas election and disclaimer laws.

Sylestine denounced the messaging -- which he called "demagogic" -- on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. He also told reporters on Monday that he was not affiliated in any way with another group that Garza accused of disrupting one of his campaign events over the weekend.

Two of Garza's supporters described being followed and intimidated by a group of bikers, while out talking to potential voters on Sunday.

Garza has been endorsed by several prominent Democrats, including Beto O’Rouke, Congressman Lloyd Doggett, Congressman Greg Casar, and Wendy Davis.

Hours before Election Day, a group of crime victims held a news conference to tell their stories of frustration with Garza's office, accusing him of mishandling cases. Several of them called on Travis County voters to vote for a change in the office.

The winner of the Democratic primary will face off with Republican candidate Daniel Betts in November.