District 9 · Declared challenger

Katie Kam

Declared candidate for Austin City Council District 9, on the ballot November 3, 2026.

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Profile

About Katie Kam.

Austin resident and declared challenger for the November 2026 District 9 election. Filed candidacy on March 9, 2026 with the Austin City Clerk.

Filed
March 9, 2026 (Austin City Clerk)
Seat
City Council District 9 — downtown and central Austin
Status
Challenger; incumbent is Zohaib “Zo” Qadri
Profession
Civil engineer; Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin
Business
Founder and CEO, BioBQ — Austin-based cultured-meat startup
Roots
Fourth-generation Texan
Campaign site
katiekamforaustin.com
Stated platform

“KAM” — Keep Austin Musical, Memorable, Moving, Magical.

The campaign’s public materials describe four priorities: protecting Austin’s music and arts identity; preserving neighborhood character and historic streetscape; expanding mobility options without highway widening; and opposing the proposed multi-billion-dollar convention center expansion. The campaign tagline is “No highway expansions.”

In 2025, Kam reported collecting more than 4,000 signatures as a volunteer in the petition effort to put the convention center bond to a public vote.

Press references
Editorial disclosure. AustinMayor.com has issued an editorial endorsement of Katie Kam for District 9. That endorsement is presented on a separate page so it remains distinct from this neutral candidate profile. Read the endorsement →

If the Kam campaign or another District 9 candidate would like to correct or add information on this profile, please reach out via our network contact page.

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About this page. AustinMayor.com is an independent civic-reference site that has covered Austin politics since 2003. This page is a neutral candidate profile presenting publicly available information. It is not a campaign-authorized communication and is not paid for by Katie Kam for Austin or any political committee. The site’s editorial endorsement of this candidate is published separately at /endorsements/katiekam/.