Five Things to Know About the May 5 Local Elections

Here are five things to know about the May 5 local elections in Collin, Dallas, Denton, Rockwall and Tarrant counties. 1. There aren't many mayor's racesGarland is the largest city that will choose a new mayor. In that race, the resignation of Doug Athas as mayor forced a special election to fill a one-year term. Lori Barnett Dodson, 54, has a real estate and accounting background and is the lone Garland mayoral candidate with City Council experience. Leala Green, 72, a runner-up in last year's mayor's race, was Garland's NAACP president, and her community activism dates to the 1980s. Louis Moore, 71, served a decade on the city's Plan Commission and helped spearhead the creation of Garland's first residential historic district.Lewisville is the only other North Texas city with over 100,000 residents that has a contested mayor's race. Innovation consultant Winton Edmondson, 40, charity organizer Penny Mallet, 57, and Rudy Durham, 62, Denton County's chief appraiser, are running for the three-year term.Six candidates are running to be mayor in Lancaster. Two of those candidates resigned their council seats, opening up other races.   Continue reading...