Petra Hawkins, left, and Stephen Dinger head to a runoff in the Tyler City Council District 2 race.

Tyler native Petra Hawkins came out victorious over Stephen Dinger in the Tyler City Council District 2 runoff race.

“I was feeling pretty confident but I didn’t want to count my eggs before they hatched,” Hawkins said Saturday night. “When we got the final number, it was just surreal.”

It was a close race. According to the unofficial results, tallies show Hawkins received 508 votes, or 53%, and Dinger received 456 votes, or 47%. A total of 964 ballots were cast, including early in-person and mail-in votes out of the 9,463 eligible voters, making for a turnout of 10.19%.

“Congratulations to Petra for her victory (Saturday). We are fortunate to live in a city where dedicated people volunteer their time to serve,” Dinger said on his campaign page. “Although my future will not be serving as a member of the City Council, I will remain involved in our community. Great things are happening in Tyler, Texas, and I’m excited to be a part of it.”

Early voting had the largest impact on the race, as about 65% of the ballots were cast during that timeframe.

Early voting and absentee results had Hawkins in the lead. According to the unofficial results, early voting and absentee ballot tallies showed Dinger received 330 votes, or 45.96%, and Hawkins received 388 votes, or 54.04%. Approximately 718 ballots were cast early, including in-person and mail-in votes out of the 9,463 eligible voters — a 7.6% turnout.

Hawkins, a registered nurse since 1998, has served in various roles and worked on rapid response and crisis assignments across the country.

In 2022, she became a licensed real estate agent and co-owns multiple businesses. Active in the Tyler Chamber of Commerce and other local organizations, she is also enrolled in Tyler ISD’s Community Education Specialist Training Program.

“I care about the community where I live; we’re growing, and I want to see us continue progressing,” Hawkins said in a previous interview with the Tyler Morning Telegraph.

Dinger and Hawkins were in a runoff after no candidate received over 50% of the vote in the three-candidate May 4 election. Dinger had the lead in that election as he garnered 320 votes, or 45.65%, while Hawkins received 256 votes, or 36.52%. The third candidate, Dexter Floyd, received 125 votes, 17.83%.

District 2 was established in the 1970s and predominantly composed of minority families, promoting diversity and representation within Tyler’s government.

During her campaign, Hawkins highlighted the importance of maintaining minority representation on the city council for District 2 and said the district promotes diversity and representation within Tyler’s government.

“Not just because I’m a minority, but because I’m from the community. I’ve been engaging with the community. I’m experienced in the community…,” Hawkins said.

Hawkins will fill the seat currently held by longtime councilmember Broderick McGee, whose term is expiring.

The district spans Highway 31 West to the South Southwest Loop 323, ending near Fresh on Old Jacksonville Highway.

Final unofficial results of the city runoff election have been reported by the county elections office, but all results are considered unofficial until they are canvassed.

Final unofficial results had not been posted to the county elections website as of 11:45 p.m. Saturday, multiple calls to the elections office went unanswered, and the elections office was closed. However, Dinger and Hawkins confirmed the results to the Tyler Morning Telegraph on Saturday evening. This story was updated with final unofficial numbers once they were formally released by the elections office Sunday morning.