Stephen Sanders/Photo by Campaign
By Amarillo Pioneer Publisher's Committee
In Lubbock, voters are casting their ballots to select their next mayor. Incumbent Dan Pope is facing challenger Stephen Sanders in a race which was bumped from the May ballot to the November ballot.
The selection of Lubbock’s mayor is incredibly important, not just for the Hub City, but also for the Panhandle and West Texas as a whole. For years, Lubbock’s mayor has served as an important individual in facilitating discussions between Amarillo, Lubbock, El Paso, and numerous other cities in our area.
However, it is our publisher’s committee’s view that Mayor Dan Pope has totally failed to provide meaningful representation for his city’s taxpayers, and residents of the entire region.
In 2017, Pope, Amarillo Mayor Ginger Nelson, and El Paso Mayor Dee Margo traveled to Austin to lobby Gov. Greg Abbott against the special session agenda, which included property tax reform legislation and annexation reform. The move by this delegation of mayors sent a clear signal that tax-and-spend policies are king for their city governments, versus providing meaningful property tax reform solutions. In putting ego above needs for taxpayer relief, Pope, Nelson, and Margo failed the entire region.
However, Pope’s failures are not confined to just his record on taxpayer relief. In April, Pope voted to give a tax incentive package to a project which included a restaurant where his wife was an investor. According to local media reports, Pope failed to disclose this conflict of interest prior to the vote and voted in favor of the incentive package. He later apologized once he was caught red-handed during his re-election bid.
While these are just a handful of the failures of Pope’s tenure as mayor, they certainly should be top of mind for voters casting ballots in Lubbock.
So, what is the path forward? Dan Pope has failed as a mayor, but is there a solution possible?
This November, Lubbock voters have the chance to take their power back.
Stephen Sanders is challenging Pope, putting an emphasis on putting citizens first in Lubbock. Sanders has been open about his positions on the issues and has forcefully condemned conflicts of interest in the city’s government, pointing out that officials in such situations hurt citizens and their wallets.
Sanders has the right ideas and the right platform to get things done for Lubbock taxpayers and to be a forceful voice to impact not only Lubbock, but the entire Panhandle and West Texas regions, in a very positive way.
The Lubbock Pioneer will soon be around to cover what is happening at Lubbock’s city hall, to work as a watchdog for our neighbors in the area. Luckily, Lubbock voters do not have to wait until then to send a watchdog to city hall to work for them.
We recommend Lubbock voters back Stephen Sanders for mayor. Lubbock deserves better than Dan Pope, but better representation can only be had if voters show up to the polls and make their voices heard.
Early voting begins October 13. Election Day is November 3.
Please note: A publisher’s committee endorsement does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the Amarillo Pioneer’s advertisers or staff. An endorsement of one candidate does not represent a criticism of other candidates running unless otherwise stated. Endorsements may be offered in additional races. A primary endorsement does not necessarily indicate a general election endorsement, as local general election endorsements will be handled on a case-by-case basis.