The warnings and the high-profile campaign against the so-called Dallas Hero propositions mattered little in the end. Two of the three propositions — Proposition S that gives any Dallas resident license to sue the city and Proposition U that unrealistically mandates the hiring of hundreds more police officers — passed.
These two charter amendments and a third one that would have tied the city manager’s pay to the results of a citizen survey ended up on the ballot thanks to a deceptive campaign by the activist group Dallas Hero. The group prevailed despite being significantly outspent by the Dallas political establishment, which opposed the amendments.
What does this say about Dallas?
We stand by our conclusions that the amendments will be disastrous for City Hall, and we suspect that a majority of voters would have rejected them had the implications been apparent. Confusion and ignorance played a role in Dallas Hero’s victories. As our colleague Sharon Grigsby reported, some Dallas voters knew little to nothing about the charter amendments and went with their gut. Who doesn’t want more police officers, or for the little guy to prevail over bureaucrats when City Hall drops the ball?
What the ballot language doesn’t say is that the city could be sued into bankruptcy by giving up its governmental immunity to lawsuits. What the ballot couldn’t explain is that Dallas can’t at once recruit the 800 to 900 additional police officers to get to the 4,000 cops that will now be required under city charter. To budget for that many officers, the city will have to siphon money out of other things that matter to residents, such as parks and streets.
Disappointing as the results are, this election should be a splash of cold water for the City Council and city management. Whether voters made an informed decision to back the Dallas Hero charter amendments or whether they chose on the spot, they are telling us that a majority are unhappy with City Hall and worried about public safety generally.
Dallas can’t rest on the laurels of a successful plan to reduce violent crime when its police and fire pension mess — a self-inflicted wound that doesn’t help recruiting — is still in the news. Many Dallasites don’t feel a sense of order when they walk out the door, whether it be drivers speeding with impunity or homeless camps all around. Some reasonably feel frustration about having to report a crime, even a minor one, online instead of talking to someone in person or on the phone.
Voters passed propositions S and U with 55% and 51% of the vote, respectively. Even more voters, about 57%, rejected a charter amendment initiated by council members to raise their salaries.
All but two of the 18 Dallas propositions passed, though with differing margins, showing that voters wrestled with some of the issues presented.
Dallasites’ justified dissatisfaction with City Hall made them vulnerable to trickery. But even if voters were misdirected about the solutions, city leaders are the ones who need to look in the mirror.
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