How ‘defund police’ perceptions drove a political wedge in upcoming Dallas City Council elections
How ‘defund police’ perceptions drove a political wedge in upcoming Dallas City Council elections
Claims of the Dallas Police Department being defunded are playing prominently in mailers to voters ahead of Saturday’s election.
File photo.(Irwin Thompson / Staff Photographer)
The Dallas City Council last fall voted to take $7 million from the police department’s overtime budget to spend on streetlights and hire civilians to replace cops working desk jobs.
Now, the issue is driving a political wedge in Saturday’s municipal elections as candidates who oppose the decision are accusing those who supported the move of “defunding the police.”
Saturday’s Dallas city council election has become in part a referendum on Mayor Eric Johnson and his failed attempt to prevent the council from cutting $7.
Opinion
Letters to the Editor - Candidate Paula Blackmon, COVID-19 vaccination rate, backup for extreme weather, Northwest ISD bond proposals
Reader says candidate is a good-government moderate, others discuss concerns about vaccine effort, the recent winter storm woes and school district elections
Dallas City Council member Paula Blackmon talks to Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson.(Smiley N. Pool / DMN)
Candidate has proven herself
I live in Paula Blackmon’s district. She wasn’t my choice in her first campaign, but she definitely has my vote now. Her two challengers this year are demagoguing Blackmon’s vote to reduce the police overtime budget, claiming she wants to “defund” the police. The amount involved, $7 million, is a tiny fraction of the overall police budget of $539 million, which itself was increased from the previous year.
Dallas Council Incumbents Raise Gobs of Money After Mayor Endorses Opponents
City Council members who have drawn challengers backed by the mayor have enjoyed a fundraising spike over the last month.
By Alex Macon
Published in
FrontBurner
April 26, 2021
11:52 am
Mayor Eric Johnson has made it known he’d like to see several of his Dallas City Council colleagues unseated on May 1. What is less clear is whether the mayor’s endorsements have done his favored candidates any good.
New campaign finance reports show that three Dallas City Council incumbents who are facing challengers with either Johnson’s open or implied support are handily out-fundraising their opponents in the final days of election season. It’s a sharp contrast from a month ago before the mayor made his endorsements when challengers in these three races were either outpacing or essentially matching the incumbents in campaign contributions.
Mayor Backs Incumbents Opponents in City Council Races dallasobserver.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from dallasobserver.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.