Please join us and moderator Lucy Billingsley to get to know your Mayoral candidates.
Mayoral Candidates
Mike Ablon- Occupation: Real Estate Developer
Ablon chaired the semi-independent entity looking to build a park between the Trinity River levees before resigning in December. The native Dallasite, who helped remake the Design District into an upscale mixed-use area, says he is focusing on building up the city's neighborhoods.
Regina Montoya- Occupation: Lawyer
Montoya recently co-chaired the Mayor's Task Force on Poverty, but the Harvard-trained lawyer has had a long career in politics. She worked as an aide in the Clinton administration, ran for Congress unsuccessfully in 2000 and helped raise money for Hillary Clinton in 2016. She's also married to Paul Coggins, a former U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Texas.
Scott Griggs- Occupation: City Council Member, Lawyer
Griggs comes to the race with a team of council allies -- Philip Kingston, Adam Medrano and Omar Narvaez -- firmly in his corner. The lawyer, a father of three young children, has served four terms on the council and has pushed an anti-establishment message.
Lynn McBee- Occupation: CEO of Young Women's Preparatory Network
McBee has long been a high-profile philanthropist and civic leader in Dallas. She is the current chair of the board for The Bridge homelessness center in downtown Dallas. She said she recently moved to Dallas from Highland Park, where she long resided.
Miguel Solis- Occupation: Dallas ISD Trustee
Solis is the youngest person ever elected to the Dallas ISD board and the youngest to serve as its school board president. The former teacher said he believes he'll bring a "fresh approach" to tackling the city's issues, including housing, transportation, food deserts and inequality
Eric Johnson- Occupation: State Representative, Lawyer
Johnson, first elected to the Texas House in 2010, represents swaths of West Dallas, southern Dallas and eastern Dallas around the Interstate 30 corridor. He has been a major player in Dallas politics in recent years and recently pushed successfully for the removal of a historically inaccurate Confederate plaque inside the Texas Capitol.
Jason Villalba- Occupation: Former State Representative
Villalba, known for his support for law enforcement and his fight against anti-vaxxers and the bathroom bill, served three terms in the Texas House before losing the Republican primary for state representative in 2018. Villalba, who has deep roots in Dallas and the area, said he wants Dallas to "dream big" and pitched himself as a candidate who understood the needs of northern and southern Dallas.
