Best Local Elected Official (City)

1. Mayor Julián Castro
sanantonio.gov/mayor

Now well into his second term as the strapping young mayor of the nation's seventh-largest city, it seems Julián Castro's finally moving past the fawning national media spotlight. Not that Castro didn't deserve the attention, but tags like "the Post-Hispanic Hispanic Politician" and one of the nation's "most promising young Democrats" miss the boat when it comes to Castro's efforts on the home turf. Last year saw the rise of Castro's SA2020 roadmap for San Antonio's future, something that, if successful, aims to make sweeping changes to our city's public health, economy, and energy portfolio. Last summer, he heralded an array of green energy projects with CPS Energy that may just one day push San Antonio out in front as the leader in clean energy technology. With his State-of-the-Union invite, and now with place at the advisors' table on the Obama reelection campaign, Castro still gets his national media moments. But what's more important is how he's trying to prove that rep at home. His newest initiative, the one Castro says he's "willing to stake my entire mayoral tenure on," aims to bump SA's sales tax to the limit, all to fund early childhood education.

2 . Diego Bernal
City Councilman, District 1, sanantonio.gov/council/d1

3 . David Medina
City Councilman, District 5, sanantonio.gov/council/d5