Abigail Velez left her CBS Austin KEYE nightside reporter and fill-in anchor position as of October 2025.
Velez posted one of the most-produced goodbye videos I've ever seen from a Texas reporter (see below). The video looks even more impressive since it takes place at the Texas Capitol!
"Thank you, Austin. You’ve shaped me, challenged me, and prepared me for the next chapter.
It’s been an honor to tell your stories, and to be a small part of yours.
Signing off, for now."
I'm pulling for Velez to end up at a Dallas - Fort Worth television station since her husband, Keenan Willard, is an NBC 5 DFW KXAS reporter.
Velez joined CBS Austin in August 2023 as the morning reporter and multimedia journalist, earning a promotion to the nightside shift in 2024.
She began her career in Eastern North Carolina as a multimedia journalist for WNCT 9.
Before launching her journalism career, Velez served as Miss San Antonio USA 2022. She also founded #ValueYourVote, a social awareness initiative encouraging civic engagement and informed voting.
Velez graduated with honors from the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio in December 2022, earning a degree in Multimedia Journalism. During her time at UIW, she was a reporter and lead anchor for UIWtv, wrote for The Logos student newspaper, hosted on the university’s radio station, and served as chief of staff in the Student Government Association.
She previously attended El Paso Community College and the University of Texas at El Paso before transferring to UIW on scholarship.
