Voters divided over Dallas Hero proposals, early election results show

The Dallas Morning News went live election results for local, state and national races.

Early voters are divided along three Dallas Hero proposals that have divided the city in the last three months.

Reports released just after 7 p.m. show 51% of voters supported Proposition S, 41% voted for Proposition T and 48% supported Proposition U, according to preliminary unofficial results.

City Council put Proposals S, T and U on the ballot in August. after the nonprofit group Dallas Hero collected at least 20,000 voter signatures on petitions for each proposal. Dallas Hero says they are needed to improve public safety and government accountability. The proposal’s most prominent supporters were the Dallas County Republican Party and Monty Bennett, a major Republican donor and local hotel owner.

But the three proposals have faced fierce opposition from elected officials, civilians, businesses and other local leaders and groups, as well as the city’s largest police and fire associations. They argued that the proposals would create obstacles to city governance and lead to drastic cuts to nearly all Dallas services to meet new police demands and prevent a surge in lawsuits.

More than 100 people gathered at the TK Comedy Club in north Dallas just after the polls closed Tuesday night for an election watch party hosted by the Dallas County Republican Party and American Jewish Conservatives.

People posed with a cardboard cutout of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat and orange traffic safety vests. The crowd cheered as CNN reported the first election results in Texas, showing incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz leading Democratic state Rep. Colin Allred. But Nate Weymouth, a Dallas voter who lives in Preston Hollow, said he was concerned about the early results of the city charter proposals. He voted for Propositions S, T and U, believing they give Dallas the best chance to quickly improve crime control and give residents more tools to hold officials accountable.

“I think there has been a lot of confusion and misinformation about these three proposals, and I can’t help but feel that may have hurt their chances of passing,” Weymouth, 57, said. “It’s still early, but I hope they can refuse to participate in the elections. back when more voters come.”

Dallas Councilwoman Paula Blackmon, who along with the rest of the City Council urged voters to reject Propositions S, T and U, said it was too early to declare victory.

“It’s too close to call,” she said from Rep. Colin Allred’s campaign. “There are many variables that still need to be taken into account, but these are the three to keep an eye on. I hope they all fail.”

Former Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert, who was part of a coalition of several dozen current and former elected officials who opposed Propositions S, T and U, said that on paper he understands why people would support them. But it was felt that once people were told about the possible consequences, “they would generally reject them.”

“That’s been the goal all along, to educate people about the consequences of these proposals that weren’t well thought out,” said Leppert, who was mayor from 2007 to 2011. “If they seem to be failing, that means maybe we did get some education there after all.”

If none of the proposals pass, a new slate of charter renewal proposals could go to voters as soon as May. Otherwise, voters will likely be able to consider new charter amendments in two years.

Two political action committees formed to campaign against the proposals reported raising more than $1 million in the run-up to the election and spend at least $700,000 on advertising and other expenses urging voters to oppose the proposals.

Proposition S would require the city to waive governmental immunity to allow any resident to file a lawsuit alleging that the municipal government is failing to comply with the charter, local ordinances or state law.

Proposition T would require Dallas to conduct an annual survey of at least 1,400 residents assessing the city manager’s effectiveness in combating crime, homelessness, litter, panhandling and street conditions. Consequences of the results will range from City Council approval of a financial bonus equal to the City Manager’s base salary to termination of employment.

Proposition U would require the City Council to approve dedicating at least 50% of any excess annual revenue to the police and fire pension system, increase the police force by 900 personnel and require the city to maintain a minimum of 4,000 officers while increasing starting police salaries and other benefits are among the highest in North Texas.

They are among 18 proposals voters considered to update the Dallas charter and city code.

The Dallas City Council initially approved three other charter change proposals: Propositions K, M and N. These were designed to overturn the Dallas Hero proposals. In September, the Texas Supreme Court ordered the council to rescind the counter amendments.saying no one clearly told voters that their approval would invalidate Dallas Hero’s proposals.

Dallas’ charter renewal process typically occurs once every decade. The document defines the functions, structure and powers of the city government.

Other prominent supporters of Propositions S, T and U included Dallas County GOP Chairman Allen West, Dallas Housing Authority board chair Betty Culbreath, the Dallas chapter of the National Black Police Association and former Republican state representative Stephanie Carter, who is from Dallas. Honorary chair of the Hero.

Dallas Hero is a 501(c)(4) non-profit organization, which means it is not legally required to disclose its donors. The Dallas Hero website page lists its fundraising goal as $750,000. As of Tuesday morning, the group said it had raised $104,857 from 41 donors, but did not identify any of them.

Dallas Hero has not revealed any of its sponsors, other than confirming that Bennett is a sponsor. It also does not say how much money was raised or spent.

At least 50 current and former city, county and state elected officials have publicly urged voters to reject Propositions S, T and U or supported campaigns against the proposals. This group includes the entire 15-member Dallas City Council; the entire five-member Dallas County Commissioners Court; former Dallas mayors Mike Rawlings, Tom Leppert, Laura Miller, Ron Kirk and Steve Bartlett; Democratic Senators Royce West, Nathan Johnson; and Democratic Reps. Rafael Anchia, John Bryant and Yvonne Davis.

They received support from many civic and business groups, including the Dallas Police Association, Greater Dallas Black Police Association, Dallas Firemen’s Association, Dallas Citizens Council, Dallas County Democratic Party, Real Estate Council, Downtown. Dallas Inc., Greater Dallas Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Dallas Black Chamber of Commerce and Dallas Regional Chamber.