Austin Signal

We’re getting more information about the three victims from Sunday morning’s shooting at Buford’s. We’ll have the latest from the KUT newsroom.

It’s primary Election Day here in Texas. Four Austin-area Texas legislators are vying for the Democratic nomination of various positions. In addition to the statewide offices, there’s lots going on in the Central Texas area. KUT’s county reporters for Hays, Travis and Williamson counties are out in the field talking to voters. We’ll hear about the reasons they’re coming out to cast a ballot this Election Day.

Plus, Austin wouldn’t be Austin without its wacky cast of characters. Who’s the guy who used to write and read poems before concerts across town? We’ll have the answer from our ATXplained project.

The full transcript of this episode of Austin Signal is available on the KUT & KUTX Studio website. The transcript is also available as subtitles or captions on some podcast apps.

Jerry Quijano [00:00:08] It’s primary election day here in Texas. Four Austin area representatives from the Texas legislature are vying for the Democratic nomination of various positions. In addition to those statewide offices, there is lots going on here in our central Texas area. KUT’s county reporters for Hayes, Travis, and Williamson counties are out in the field talking to voters. We’re going to hear about the reasons they’re coming out to cast a ballot on this Election Day. You still have time to cast your ballot. Don’t go anywhere. Austin Signal coming up next.

KUT Announcer: Laurie Gallardo [00:00:39] The Austin Signal is a production of KUT News, hosted by Jerry Quijano.

Jerry Quijano [00:00:44] And we have an ATXplain story as we remind you why KUT is worth your support. Come hear more about your story in this community that we share with one another. That is up next. It’s right here on Austin Signal. This is Austin Signal. I’m your host, Jerry Kehannel. It is the third day of March, 2026. Thank you for making us part of your day. This is listener powered public radio. The Austin Police Department confirmed late last night that a third person died as a result of injuries from Sunday morning shooting at Buford’s. Jorge Peterson was 30 years old according to APD and an online fundraiser for Peterson called him an inspiration in the mixed martial arts community. We also got corrected information about the ages of the other victims. We shared the press conference with you yesterday, but we got some updated info a little bit later after the show. Savitha Shan, one of the victims, was a 21-year-old dual degree student here at UT Austin. In a statement shared through the university, her parents said she was a hardworking student, always seeking to uplift those around her, including through volunteer service and community involvement. Ryder Harrington, the other victim, was a 19-year-old Texas Tech student who graduated from Austin’s Westwood High School in 2024. Harrington’s siblings honored him on social media, calling him, quote, the best mix of all the Harrington siblings. We’ll have more about the victims in the show notes for today’s podcast. And the KUT Newsroom and the Texas Standard Newsroom will continue covering the investigation and updates from law enforcement. And of course, when we get those here, we will share them for you here on Austin Signal. It is primary election day here in Texas. Polls open at seven o’clock this morning and they will close at seven a clock tonight. We have been telling you for many a day now that we have voter guides for Hayes, Travis and Williamson counties at kut.org. And just as a reminder, if you have to go at the very last second, if you are in line before seven o clock, you will be allowed to vote. We have heard some reports of some lines here and around Austin. Some people said was nice and smooth. Others said they had to wait a little, so we will see how it goes. There are lots of changing elements this election cycle, and as KUT’s Katie McAfee is reporting, a change in the ballot counting process here in Travis County this year could possibly delay tonight’s election results.

Katy McAfee [00:03:22] Ballots cast during the early voting period are usually tallied up the Saturday before Election Day. That includes mail-in ballots. But this election, the Travis County Republican Party wanted to change things up. So early and mail- in ballots aren’t being counted until today. Travis County GOP Chair Jennifer Fleck says the party asked for this to prepare for a new state law that goes into effect in 2027. That law will eliminate the three-day gap between early voting and Election Day Rather than wait until next year, Fleck thought. Why not start this process now? Because it’s something we’re going to have to move toward anyway. Plus, Flecks says the rule change addresses some concerns from the Republican Party. That the ballots are.

Jennifer Fleck [00:04:03] Potentially tampered with or the ballots are known, right, the results of the early vote potentially are known by others or

Katy McAfee [00:04:13] or someone prior to election day. Travis County Clerk Diana Limon-Marcado says the policy change will put enormous pressure on election staff. They’ll have to prepare nearly 100 additional voting sites overnight between the end of early voting and election day, plus Limon Marcado says the concerns that the election results are known before election day or are tampered with are unfounded.

Jennifer Fleck [00:04:35] Nobody sees those results. They’re kept sort of sequestered within the software system. We can’t actually see what happens. That system is audited and logged, and both parties see who’s turning on that system when, what’s been counted by that system, et cetera. Since early.

Katy McAfee [00:04:48] Voting ballots weren’t counted in advance this election. Limon Marcado says initial results might not be ready when polls close at 7 p.m. Like usual. She’s hopeful they’ll be released on time. But it depends on how many confusing mail in ballots the county receives.

Jennifer Fleck [00:05:01] So for example, if you’re a ballot by mail voter and you’re selecting which candidate you want for US Senate, but you don’t like any of those, and so you just scribble on your ballot, Mickey Mouse, which happens frequently, a human, actually two humans, one from the Democratic party, one from Republican party, will actually look at that image of your ballot and decipher what was the voter’s intent.

Katy McAfee [00:05:23] Lamone Mercado says these joke ballots are the most frequent issue the county runs into while tabulating votes. So she says the number of votes Mickey Mouse gets could decide when we get final election results tonight. I’m Katie McAfee in Austin.

Jerry Quijano [00:05:37] All right, and now we’re going to go out live to KUT’s Travis County reporter, Katie McAfee. She’s out at a polling location. Katie, how are you doing?

Katy McAfee [00:05:45] Hey Jerry, I’m good, how are you?

Jerry Quijano [00:05:46] I’m doing well, which polling location are you at?

Katy McAfee [00:05:49] I am at the South Pleasant Valley branch of the Austin Public Library.

Jerry Quijano [00:05:53] Okay cool, I always voted libraries as well. What’s the scene like? Is it busy out there?

Katy McAfee [00:05:58] It is extremely busy here. The Travis County elections website says it’s over a 50 minute wait. There is a line wrapping around the building. So if you are listening to this and on your way to vote on your lunch break, maybe go somewhere with a shorter line.

Jerry Quijano [00:06:13] Well I know you were wondering maybe you might get a chance to vote yourself, I guess probably since you saw that line you maybe have to wait a little longer yourself.

Katy McAfee [00:06:21] Certainly, and I’ll probably go to a different polling place.

Jerry Quijano [00:06:23] Place. So have you had a chance to talk to anybody who’s been out there today?

Katy McAfee [00:06:27] Yeah, I’ve been talking to folks in line. Every person I’ve talked to so far says they’re here to vote for James Tallarico. Maybe unsurprising being in Austin. And I did get to talk to two lovely siblings, Megan and Kevin. They said they always go to vote together and they hold each other accountable by going together to the polls. Both of them also voting for James Tallerico. Megan says she is a public school teacher in Austin ISD, and the recent ICE raids really affected her students, and both of them are motivated to try and flip Texas blue.

Jerry Quijano [00:07:04] And I guess it’s not really all that surprising that the polling place that you’re at is busy because we’ve seen pretty good turnout for early voting here in Travis County, correct?

Katy McAfee [00:07:13] Yeah, that’s right. Early voting turnout was amazing by Travis County and Texas standards. The latest numbers from yesterday showed just under 19% of registered voters showed up to vote and that was more than any primary election in Travis County since the presidential primary in 2008.

Jerry Quijano [00:07:33] Now you’ve been doing a lot of reporting ahead of election day today. What are you going to be watching tonight, Katie?

Katy McAfee [00:07:39] Thanks for asking. Yeah, I’m covering two races tonight, both of the Travis County Commissioner precinct races that are on the ballot. In precinct four, that’s south and southeast Travis County. There are four candidates running and there’s no incumbent and there is also no Republican candidates running. So whoever wins that race tonight is going to run unopposed in November and then be a brand new commissioner on the dais next Dear? And then I’m also covering the Precinct 2 race. The incumbent for that race is a Commissioner Brigid Shea and there are three candidates who are vying for her seat and that precinct, just so folks know, is kind of central, north, and east blob of Travis County.

Jerry Quijano [00:08:23] And remind us of the polling place that you’re at, Katie.

Katy McAfee [00:08:26] I am at the South Pleasant Valley branch of the Austin Public Library.

Jerry Quijano [00:08:30] All right, and there’s a long line, so if you’re planning to vote there, maybe make plans to go elsewhere. That is KUT’s Travis County reporter, Katie McAfee. Katie, thank you very much.

Katy McAfee [00:08:38] Thanks so much, Jerry.

Jerry Quijano [00:08:39] Okay, now we’re gonna go up north to Williamson County. We’re gonna talk with KUT’s Williamson County reporter, Kailey Hunt. Hi Kailey.

Kailey Hunt [00:08:46] Hi Jerry, how are you?

Jerry Quijano [00:08:47] I’m doing well. How’s it going out there? Where you at?

Kailey Hunt [00:08:49] Pretty good, I am at the Georgetown City Hall. This is one of the Republican precinct voting locations today on primary election day. And yeah, there’s been a pretty steady trickle of folks coming into this location. I believe there’s several precincts that have been combined and directed to come and vote here today.

Jerry Quijano [00:09:12] Well, I’m glad you used the word precinct, because there’s something different when it comes to voting for William County GOP residents or GOP voters this time around, am I right?

Kailey Hunt [00:09:22] Uh, yes, and all, all voters in Williamson County are affected by this change. Yes. So, um, yeah, unlike in the past 10 years, um. You know, we no longer have countywide voting locations at Williamson County on primary election day. That is because the Williamson county GOP decided that they no longer wanted to offer the program. And so basically the Democrats, um just due to state law had no choice, but to follow. So now what you have is precinct based voting, basically where people are assigned a polling place in their neighborhood and that’s where they have to vote today.

Jerry Quijano [00:10:04] And do you know, has that caused any delays as far as your knowledge?

Kailey Hunt [00:10:10] Delays, not so much, well delays for voters, yes. Actually I’ve spoken to quite a few voters this morning who were not aware of the change, missed the communication on that part and so they went to their regular polling location which they’d voted at in previous years and were told, hey, this is actually not your location. You are not allowed to cast your ballot here today. I spoke to one lady in particular who actually got turned away twice and redirected, and that upped her total time dedicated to voting to over two hours. So yeah, a lot of confusion, a lotta chaos up here in Williamson County. So I do wanna tell folks, if you’re listening and you live in Williamston County, make sure you know which precinct you are registered at, you live and make sure you go to the Williamson County Elections Department webpage. And look at the list. It’ll be separate depending on whether you’re voting in the Democratic primary or the Republican primary, but you need to go to that list, find your precinct and find your exact location.

Jerry Quijano [00:11:18] All right, you heard it right there from KUT’s Williamson County reporter. That is Kailey Hunt. We will continue to talk with you, Kailey. Tomorrow we’ll have you back on the show, so have a great election day. Thanks for coming in on and talking with us.

Kailey Hunt [00:11:32] Thank you, Jerry.

Jerry Quijano [00:11:33] All right, finally we’re gonna move on to Leigh Walden, KUT’s Hayes County reporter who’s out in the field as well. Hey Leigh, how are you doing?

Leigh Walden [00:11:40] Good. Hi, Jerry.

Jerry Quijano [00:11:41] I’m doing okay today, how are you and where are you at?

Leigh Walden [00:11:46] Yeah, I’m actually in front of the Buda City Hall right now where folks are having a bit of an easier time voting, it sounds like, than in Williamson County. But yeah, lots of excited people out here today at the polls.

Jerry Quijano [00:11:57] So what have you heard from the people out there?

Leigh Walden [00:12:00] Yeah, I’ve been hearing a lot about folks who are excited about change, voting to cast ballots toward change and contribute to what feels like an exciting primary season to them. We’ve talked a lot this morning about the Senate race in particular. And then there’s folks who are keeping an eye out for Texas 21, the congressional district seat.

Jerry Quijano [00:12:22] Has the polling location that you’re at been busy today?

Leigh Walden [00:12:26] Yeah, it’s pretty massively busy. I’ve been popping around, and this one in Kyle City Hall have had lots of folks in and out all morning.

Jerry Quijano [00:12:34] Okay, you plan to keep hopping around Hayes County today?

Leigh Walden [00:12:37] That’s the plan. I think it’s a very civically engaged day for Hays County, so I’m excited to be talking to so many people who are out casting ballots.

Jerry Quijano [00:12:46] Is there anything in particular, I know this is your first election here with us at KUT and here in Texas, is there anything particular that you’re going to be watching tonight or are you just looking to kind of get, as you said, take in the day here in Hays County?

Leigh Walden [00:13:01] Yeah, I mean, we’re obviously watching federal and statewide primaries, but in Hayes County in particular, there’s three races kind of keeping kind of to keep an eye on. Again, Texas 21, the congressional seat, it’s a pretty packed primary with 15 candidates running and there’ll probably be a runoff within the Republican side because there are so many folks on the ballot. So we’re watching that scene, which kind of names fall out to the top. We’re also watching the Hayes County Judge see. There are three democratic uh… Candidates in that position one of them is that uh… Current haze county judge ruben beseta and then we also you know it also is worth keeping your eye on that the d a’s race here in haze country because there’s not a republican challenger said whoever floats the top of the democratic ticket will likely carry the election of number

Jerry Quijano [00:13:52] All right, that’s KUT’s Hays County reporter, Leigh Walden, thanks, Leigh. Thank you. This is Austin Signal. We’ll be back after a break. This is, Austin Signal, welcome back. Austin has iconic characters that have kept it weird over the decades, the late Leslie Cochran, the thong-wearing serial mayoral candidate and homeless activist in the 90s and 2000s. Sam Greyhorse, who rides a horse around downtown dressed as Santa Claus. And there is another character that used to be part of Austin’s music scene, but disappeared years ago. We got a question about him for one of our ATXplained live shows, KUT’s Greta Díaz-Bontalas-Vasquez went looking for him.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:14:32] If you love music and you’ve lived in Austin long enough, then you’ve probably been to plenty of concerts. That was the case for Nicole Stewart. Even before she moved to Austin for college, she would drive up here from San Antonio just to go to concerts. Apart from the bands, she remembers one guy, a distinct character who was constantly part of the Austin live music scene around 2010. So he would come out and read a poem. And then introduce the headliner. He would come on stage and read a poem related to the band that was about to play. And then just like that, leave the stage. Nicole says his poems were also different.

Nicole [00:15:11] I remember them being just kind of out there, kind of weird. I just kind think of them as psychedelic.

ambience [00:15:19] When the knife, which was an illusion after all, disappears, it leaves a ditch for gastric juice to collect, which all the candies jump into, thinking they’re leaping through the mirror. Thanks so much.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:15:33] But one day, he stopped showing up at concerts. Now, 15 years later, Nicole reached out to us because she was curious.

Nicole [00:15:41] I just kind of wanted to kind of find out like who he is, what his story was, and I guess how he got in the position to be introducing all of these bands.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:15:54] And not just any bands, big names. She remembers him introducing the band Portugal the Man at Old Emo’s. Then at Fun Fun Fun Fest. Also introducing monsters of folk, he was at ACL. He kept things fun and weird around here. Nicole was about to move out of Austin and she needed closure. So we decided to answer her question in an ATXplain live show days before she moved away. As a new person in this city, I keep hearing how Austin is not weird anymore. I wanted to track this guy down so we could all get a feeling of the old Austin. I wanted know too, who was this guy?

Nicole [00:16:36] I remember him being kind of eccentric, older. I remember having gray hair and I don’t want to say disheveled, maybe disheveled.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:16:52] For a bit, Nicole thought it was Daniel Johnston. But no way, because people in Austin knew Johnston, his art and iconic mural were already well known by then, and she knows what he looked like. Nicole is a huge fan of Portugal The Man. In fact, she went to so many of their concerts, she became friends with their lead singer, John Gurley. Since she said he had read at their concert, I gave John a call to ask about the poet.

John Gurley [00:17:20] We had a friend, Dave Margelin, that used to travel around and he would kind of just recite poetry randomly.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:17:29] I gave him more details. Big guy, gray hair, maybe disheveled, read poetry about the band. Then John said the words I was afraid of. It’s not gay. Okay, back to square one. And since I was already talking to music folks, I did some investigative reporting. I went on a very long journey and talked to people at our music station, KUTX. Because who knows more about music in Austin than people who work at a music station in Austin. Some people had a vague memory of this guy, but everyone told me to ask one person in particular. A guy who saw the best and the worst of Austin’s live music scene in the late 90s and early 2000s.

Jake Perlman [00:18:14] The scene was really exciting and on any Thursday night you could see something that might just blow your head off.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:18:23] Turns out, the one man who would have the answer to Nicole’s question worked just down the hall. That’s Jake Perlman. He’s an audio engineer at KUT and KUTX, but he’s so much more than that. He’s a guardian of Austin music history, a man who’s been in multiple bands and played in every venue in Austin, and who knows everybody. And let me tell you, Jake did not disappoint.

Jake Perlman [00:18:49] There was a dude, I want to say he was from Chicago, and he would get up before shows and read kind of esoteric, beat kind of poetry. And it was really cool.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:19:02] That sounds more like it. Jake knew about him because Jake was in a band called Lion.

Jake Perlman [00:19:07] Just sort of remember like the vibe would change when he was there. It really felt like that was the place to be that night.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:19:14] If this mystery man opened your show, then it was like you’d been touched by Apollo, the god of music and poetry himself.

Jake Perlman [00:19:21] It was sort of like the weather changed a little bit inside the room.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:19:24] It felt like a big thing because there was live music every night, everywhere. So if this man had read a poem at your show…

Jake Perlman [00:19:32] It felt like you, your band had sort of arrived.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:19:36] If this guy read a poem at your show, you had made it. And Jake knows all of this because this guy wrote a poem for his band. So Jake connected me with his old bandmate, and long story short,

Thax Douglas [00:19:51] My name is Thax Douglas. I introduce bands with poems inspired by their music.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:19:59] Thackster Douglas. He started writing poetry in his 20s. At first, he would do confessional poetry. Lots of emotions, mostly negative ones.

Thax Douglas [00:20:08] I think the idea at the time was almost like a kind of therapy of if you let it all out or you let your negative feelings out into the sunlight so you can see them, maybe they’ll less frightening or something like that.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:20:23] But maybe he flew too close to the sun. He got burnt out, so he moved on to writing poems about people.

Thax Douglas [00:20:29] That was okay for about a year, but then I got bored. Esthetic boredom comes easily to me.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:20:35] At some point, he wrote poems about movies, dead artists, and hockey games. And by the late 90s…

Thax Douglas [00:20:43] As a novelty, I tried writing a poem about a band, and something just seemed to click, that it just seemed exactly right to me.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:20:52] The ritual goes like this. If he’s never heard the band, he listens to their music online. Then he approaches the band. Sometimes in advance, sometimes he just shows up at a concert and says, hey, can I read for you? They rarely say no. He writes the poem on the spot and for free.

Thax Douglas [00:21:10] I feel like I’m an honorary part of the band for that one night.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:21:14] In Chicago, he opened for huge bands like Spoon, Wilco, and the White Stripes.

Thax Douglas [00:21:19] What’s important is it’s a different band every night, so I never get bored.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:21:24] By the mid-2000s, Thackster realized Chicago was a dead end, but he had heard great things about Austin. Someone had offered him a free place to stay here, so in 2009, Thakster took the Amtrak down south.

Thax Douglas [00:21:43] I hit the ground running in Austin. It wasn’t a slow buildup at all.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:21:49] He knew the right people and he would do a show every night.

Thax Douglas [00:21:52] So that’s why the 14 months in Austin is almost equal in my mind to the 12 years I did this in Chicago.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:22:00] He sold poetry books for 20 bucks at the shows and that’s how he paid for his meals. Then he would crash on the floor of an art gallery. But the vibe in the city was changing, and facts heard what all newcomers hear when they move to Austin.

Thax Douglas [00:22:18] You got here too late. Austin isn’t Austin anymore. And I could see what he meant.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:22:25] And as nice as it was to have his work valued in Austin, he wasn’t getting paid for it. He didn’t do it for the money, but money was tight. Thaks was getting tired of being a struggling artist, so he left Austin and moved to Wisconsin. Now he’s living the dream in Madison. He introduces a band every night. It doesn’t matter if it’s for a crowd of 10 or tens of thousands. He does it for the love of music and poetry. After finding Thaks, I showed Nicole a couple of videos to make sure we had the right guy.

ambience [00:22:59] Called the Flaming Lips number five. All the excess life you didn’t use flares up at the end of your waiting period.

Nicole [00:23:11] Thank you for tracking him down. This is very fulfilling. I think this is a nice kind of farewell.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:23:22] I was glad Nicole got to know Thaxter’s story before leaving Austin, but I felt like it wasn’t enough to give her a proper farewell. I wanted her to leave knowing her question brought back a little bit of old, weird Austin even if it was just for one night. Which is why, at the live show… Ladies and gentlemen, Thaxter Douglas.

ambience [00:23:44] Hey, what’s up, music lovers? I have a poem called, A.T. Explained. There’s not a monopoly on dust. There’s plenty for everyone as sprites ride these dust ponies into photographs that are even less a symbol of real life than words were. As dust had the foresight to be democratic, there’s a sort of happiness in sharing the misery of dealing with faded symbols from now on.

Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:24:15] There is a sort of happiness in sharing the mystery of dealing with fated symbols. I’m Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vazquez in Austin.

Jerry Quijano [00:24:26] ATXplained Live is coming back May 21st. Get your tickets and ATXPlained and Austin Signal are products of the tremendous support that we get from our listeners and our communities. Our spring membership drive is happening right now. If you value the way that Austin Signal has helped you to connect to your neighbors, donate at kut.org. We would really appreciate it. In KUT News in Texas Standard, we’ll have live Election Day special coverage tonight from at least seven to nine. We hope you’ll join us. This is Austin Signal. Have a great day.

This transcript was transcribed by AI, and lightly edited by a human. Accuracy may vary. This text may be revised in the future.