City News

Master list of candidates running for Dallas City Council in May 2021

Dallas City Hall.

Photo courtesy of PCF

The Dallas City Council election is five months away, but campaigns are underway for the more than 25 candidates who have declared intentions to run for office.

Official candidate filing begins January 13 and ends February 12. Most incumbent council members are seeking re-election, though several have not yet announced a bid for another term. There are three representatives who are on their final terms: Jennifer Gates in District 13, Lee Kleinman in District 11, and Adam Medrano in District 2.

All 14 council districts will be on the ballot for two-year terms. Election Day is May 1, and runoff races will be decided June 5. The mayor serves a four-year term, and will again be up for election in 2023.

Here's our list of confirmed candidates seeking office, with incumbents listed first.

District 1 - Bishop Arts/Oak Cliff
Chad West, the first-term incumbent announced he was running again on December 1.

District 2 - Deep Ellum and East Dallas
Jesse Moreno, former member of the Park Board, filed a Treasurer's Report in August 2020.
Jonas Park, neighborhood activist, filed a Treasurer's Report in December 2020.

District 3 - Mountain Creek/Southwest Dallas
Casey Thomas, the incumbent, announced he'll run again on his Facebook page.

District 4 - Oak Cliff/South Dallas
Carolyn King Arnold, the incumbent, hasn't announced her plans.
Johnny Aquinaga, a neighborhood activist, announced his run on Facebook and filed a Treasurer's Report on January 11.
Matthew Canto, filed Treasurer's Report on November 15.
Maxie Johnson, Dallas ISD Trustee, filed a Treasurer's Report on January 7.

District 5 - Pleasant Grove
Jaime Resendez, the incumbent, is running for re-election.
Ruth Torres, who ran in 2019, announced she is considering another run.

District 6 - West Dallas
Omar Narvaez, two-term incumbent, confirmed he'll run for re-election on a December 30 Facebook post.
Earl Thomas, first-time candidate, filed a Treasurer's Report on November 23.

District 7 - Fair Park/South Dallas
Adam Bazaldua, incumbent, announced re-election bid December 1.
Tramonica Brown, social activist, announced in The Dallas Weekly and filed a Treasurer's Report December 16.
Walter "Changa" Higgins, filed a Treasurer's Report on January 11.
Calvin Johnson, lawyer ran in 2019 and announced in January that he's running again.
Donald Parrish Jr., first-time candidate, filed a Treasurer's Report December 4.
James "JT" Turknett, repeat candidate who ran in 2015 and 2017, filed a Treasurer's Report December 23.
Israel Varela, first-time candidate, created a Facebook Page and filed a Treasurer's Report December 22.

District 8 - Red Bird/Far South Dallas
Tennell Atkins, incumbent, confirmed he was running again in a letter to his district.
Subrina Brenham, income tax professional, filed a Treasurer's Report on December 4.
Davante D. Peters, who ran in 2019 in District 3, has been seeking signatures for a run in District 8.

District 9 - Lakewood/East Dallas
Paula Blackmon, incumbent, is seeking re-election.

District 10 - Lake Highlands/Northeast Dallas
Adam McGough, incumbent hasn't announced and did not respond to a query.
Virginia Alexander, filed a Treasurer’s report on December 16.

District 11 - North Dallas
Jaynie Schultz, was on the City Plan Commission, and has a campaign page; she filed a Treasurer's Report on September 17.
Hosanna F. Yemiru, veteran political organizer, is running and filed a Treasurer's Report on December 11.

District 12 - Far North Dallas
Cara Mendelsohn, incumbent has not yet announced.
Charles Foster, filed a Treasurer's Report on September 4, without listing the office seeking, but his address is in D12.

District 13 - Northwest Dallas
Leland Burk, businessman and banker, served on city's Arts & Culture Advisory Commission, announced his candidacy via a January 7 press release from Allyn Media.
Gay Donnell, president of the Turtle Creek Conservancy, filed a Treasurer's Report on January 11.

District 14 - Downtown/East Dallas
David Blewett, first-term incumbent, announced his re-election bid in an online letter.
Paul Ridley, former City Plan Commission representative, filed a Treasurer's Report on December 4.

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Politics News

Dallas narrows down field for new city manager to 4 candidates

Photo by R K on Unsplash

This is an Dallasite's sign to launch that small business they've been dreaming of.

After six months without a city manager, the city of Dallas has narrowed down the field of replacements to four semifinalists including one serving as current interim city manager, plus candidates from Fort Worth, Michigan, and Georgia.

Dallas has been without a city manager since May, when previous city manager T.C. Broadnax left to take a job with the city of Austin. Since that time, Broadnax's former chief of staff Kimberly Bizor Tolbert has served as interim city manager.

The city retained Baker Tilly, a consulting firm, to recruit and compile candidates. (Baker Tilly famously erred in the brochure it created for the position by featuring a photo of the Houston skyline instead of Dallas; they've since replaced it with Dallas.)

A spokesperson for Baker Tilly did not respond to inquiries but according to D Magazine, an email listing the candidates has been sent to the Dallas City Council.

The semifinalists include:

Kimberly Bizor Tolbert, Dallas’ current interim city manager
William Johnson, an assistant city manager in Fort Worth
Mark Washington, the city manager of Grand Rapids, Michigan
Zachary Williams, a county chief operating officer in Georgia

All have more than 25 years' of public administration experience and have worked in similar capacities in their respective cities.

Before working in Fort Worth, Johnson was Baltimore’s transportation director and Atlanta’s deputy chief operating officer and public works commissioner.

Washington worked in Fort Worth and Austin before becoming Grand Rapids’ city manager.

Williams has mostly worked in Georgia at the county level, including serving as county manager in Fulton County and chief operating officer in DeKalb County.

Tolbert began working for the city in 1998, first as the city manager’s assistant and later in the aviation department. Broadnax hired her as his chief of staff in 2017.

Unlike the Mayor and the Dallas City Council, the city manager position in Dallas is not elected but is instead appointed by the city council, and is tasked with executing policies, overseeing the annual budget, and managing staff at city hall.

The council’s Ad Hoc Committee will choose finalists, introduce them to the public, and make an offer in early 2025.

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