Valentine’s Day was the last day for Dallas City Council hopefuls to file for a place on the May 3 election ballot, and file those hopefuls did.
In all, 46 candidates will appear on Dallas’ municipal election ballots come May, 10 of which are incumbent officials seeking another two-year term. Fifteen individuals filed for the ballot on Feb. 14 alone — two of those last-minute applications were denied by the City Secretary, and one remained pending as of Monday afternoon.
Council member Paul Ridley, who has served two terms as the representative for downtown, uptown, Oak Lawn and parts of East Dallas, is the only sitting council member who escaped the filing period without drawing a challenger. While Ridley’s place at Marilla Street remains secured, the two-and-a-half-month long arm wrestling match over who is the best steward for Dallas’ future is on in thirteen other districts.
Here are four key takeaways now that the ballots are set.
In District 7, an Incumbent Faces Heavy Opposition
Council Member Adam Bazaldua earned the title of most-challenged council member, drawing five opponents for the District 7 spot. No other incumbent candidate faces more than two challengers.
One of those opponents, Marvin Crenshaw, is running a write-in campaign, meaning his name will not be printed on the ballot. Among Bazaldua’s other challengers are Lamar Jefferson; Cyndey Walker, the host of the Coffee and Politics 101 podcast; Jose Rivas Jr., a retired Navy officer who has served on the Community Police Oversight Board; and O’Neil Hesson, co-founder of the environmental group Clean the Block Initiative.
Bazaldua is eligible for a final two-year term before his time on the council concludes. In his last election, Bazaldua claimed nearly 52% of the vote to avoid a runoff.
The Elephant in City Hall
Municipal elections are rarely high voter turnout affairs; but then, when was the last time people cared as much about city charter amendments as they did this last November?
The November election solidified Dallas HERO as an influential and motivating organization in Dallas’ political climate, but which role the group will play during the upcoming election season remains unclear. Will the group issue candidate endorsements? What issues will those endorsements hinge on, and should Dallas voters gear up for a campaign as thorough as the one that pushed Propositions S and U into being? (Proposition S allows residents to sue the city. Proposition U requires hiring more police officers and sets aside additional money for police and firefighters' pensions.)
The Observer asked those questions, but all we were able to confirm is that Dallas HERO is under new leadership.
Former Dallas HERO Executive Director Pete Marocco has set sail for Washington, D.C., and the Observer has confirmed that Damien LeVeck, a filmmaker with a propensity for creating flashy short films disparaging those on the City Council he disagrees with, is now heading the organization.
“Dallas HERO is focused on ensuring Props S and U are implemented in Dallas,” LeVeck said when we asked about the upcoming election. “The people spoke in November and Dallas HERO will work to make sure the will of the people is carried out, particularly on Prop U.”
Four Districts Are Guaranteed a New Representative
Four sitting council members will not return to the horseshoe after the election: District 4’s Carolyn King Arnold, District 6’s Omar Narvaez, District 8’s Tennell Atkins and District 11’s Jaynie Schultz.
Arnold, Narvaez and Atkins have each served the maximum number of council terms allowed by Dallas’ governing city charter — although Arnold has voiced her disagreement with a recent charter amendment on how terms are measured that loops her into the term-limited bunch. Prior to November, Arnold would have been eligible to run for a fourth consecutive term.
It’s generally clear, when a council person terms out, which candidate they might feel most comfortable handing the reins to. In District 6, — the largest race with eight approved candidates on the ballot, Narvaez’s long-time staffer Laura Cadena launched her campaign on the first day of the filing period. In District 8, Atkins’ former pick for the City Plan Commission Lorie Blair already touts the representative’s endorsement on her website.
Then there is District 11, where Schultz has served only two terms and is eligible for two more. Schultz announced last summer that she would not seek reelection, citing strained relationships within City Hall and the feeling that she’s accomplished what she set out to do. Schultz’s decision to step down has cleared the field for four candidates in District 11.
In Many Districts, Second and Third Chances are Aplenty
This election season won’t be the first rodeo for 14 council candidates, who have vied for positions within the municipal government in the past with varying degrees of success.
In District 7, Jefferson’s ballot approval comes after being denied in 2023 by the city secretary for not being a registered Dallas County voter. Jefferson is the twin of Jrmar Jefferson, whose mayoral bid was denied the same year; the twins sued Dallas over the disqualifications.
Other candidates who have run for City Council in the past are Sukhbir Kaur in D2; John Sims in D3; Maxie Johnson in D4; Tony Carrillo and Linus Spiller in D6; Crenshaw in D7; Subrina Brenham and Davante Peters in D8; and Sirrano Keith Baldeo in D10. In District 11, candidate Kendal Richardson attempted to run a write-in campaign against Mayor Eric Johnson in 2023.
Three former City Council members are attempting to reclaim their spot at the horseshoe, too. David Blewett represented District 14 on the council from 2019-2021 and now runs for the District 6 spot. Also in District 6, Monica Alonzo is hoping to serve out her last round of council eligibility. Alonzo represented the district before Narvaez’s successful four-term run.
In District 8, the former one-term council member Erik Wilson is hoping for a return to City Hall. If elected, Wilson would be eligible to serve three more terms.
