Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson is facing a potential recall as local activist Davante Peters kicks off a petition citing the mayor's party switch to Republican and his track record of missed City Council meetings. The recall effort has since been confirmed by Dallas City Secretary Bilierae Johnson. Peters, a three-time City Council candidate and health store owner, has rounded up over 1,000 signatures and aims for 103,595 by March 5 to push the recall onto the City Council's agenda, as reported by The Dallas Morning News.
Johnson's office has yet to comment on the recall efforts, however, the mayor's partisan pivot last September and his poor attendance record at council meetings, which tallied over 130 unexcused hours, have drawn the ire of Dallas voters. The actions made him the subject of scorn among a base that previously viewed him as a Democratic stalwart, the city by and large standing as a beacon of blue in a state of red, according to The Texas Tribune.
Peters said in an interview that he expects to gain the backing of the Dallas County Democratic Party and community activists emphasizing “We should be able to reward our officials for great work and reprimand them for things that they’re not doing for us". The recall petition, requiring signatures from 15% of the electorate, follows an online petition launched by Kardal Coleman, chair of the Dallas County Democratic Party, which has collected over 2,300 signatures, calling for Johnson's resignation. Peters dubbed that effort as "symbolic", as per The Dallas Morning News.
Amid these political waves, Peters is pushing for a more accountable City Hall stating "If we regular people didn’t go to work, we wouldn’t have a job,” and “I feel like our leadership should be held to that same standard,” with an urgency for leadership that rises to the challenges of a rapidly evolving Dallas, he said. With the clock ticking until the March deadline, Peters is looking to harness the dissatisfaction some constituents feel over Johnson's absence and political realignment, per The Texas Tribune.
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