Ard Ardalan, a UT Law School alumnus, will kick off his campaign on Oct. 16 to represent District 9, which represents the University in the Austin City Council. Ardalan is currently challenging incumbent Zohaib “Zo” Qadri, who is another UT alumnus and has held the seat since 2023. The election will take place in November 2026.
Ardalan, currently a practicing attorney in Austin, will run on a platform to build more affordable housing and increase safety in downtown and West Campus. His experience as a lawyer fighting for tenants’ rights and as a student gave him a greater understanding of the issues facing Austin, Ardalan said.
“I’m intimately aware, not just with the student experience … but of what it’s like to live in Austin after you’ve been saddled with all the debt from going to the University of Texas,” Ardalan said. “I loved my time at the University of Texas, but I’m intimately aware of the challenges of living in Austin on a fixed or low income.”
If elected, Ardalan said he would work to improve safety in West Campus by improving lighting, expanding the availability of police officers and keeping guns out of the area.
“Public safety is never just a one-size-fits-all solution,” Ardalan said. “It really comes down to resources and political willpower. I want to make sure we have both of those.”
Another one of his objectives is to increase the affordability of West Campus housing for the average student, Ardalan said. Although additional supply is important, Ardalan said it is also essential to hold developers accountable.
“The city of Austin has a duty to its student population to make sure that the type of housing that’s being built is actually in the interest of the students and their parents and not just the developers that are going to make a buck,” Ardalan said.
One of the biggest challenges faced by Ardalan’s campaign is facing off against an incumbent who has an established team and financial support. Although Ardalan has a team to support him, he said he is responsible for several campaign tasks.
“I own my own small business,” Ardalan said. “I don’t have a team of consultants doing all of our social media, doing all of our PR or anything like that. I’m doing it all mostly by myself.”
Qadri was elected to represent District 9 in 2022. Qadri wrote in an email that he helped strengthen protections for renters and tenants, pass affordability measures and improve public safety during his time in office.
“I know there’s been a lot said about this race, but what matters most is results,” Qadri wrote. “I’m proud of what we’ve done in my first term, and I’m confident voters will see the progress we’ve made and choose to continue it.”
Ardalan said UT students are a very large voting bloc for District 9, and they should all care about this election.
“The city at its core is a college town,” Ardalan said, “A lot of the issues that we all deal with affect UT students directly. … Most UT students … understand that their day-to-day is impacted by the city of Austin’s decisions.”
Editor’s Note: A previous verison of this article incorrectly idenfitied Ardalan as the only challenger in the District 9 City Council race. This is incorrect, as of Oct. 7, there is at least one other candidate for District 9.
