Councilman Philip Kingston on election night. (David Taffet/Dallas Voice)

Early voting for the municipal runoff has begun.

In Dallas, there is a citywide runoff for mayor between Scott Griggs and Eric Johnson. Both Stonewall Democrats and Dallas Gay and Lesbian Alliance PAC endorsed Griggs.

There are runoffs in four Dallas City Council races:

District 4 incumbent Carolyn King Arnold faces Dawn Blair.

In District 7, Stonewall Democrats endorsed Adam Bazaldua over Tiffanni Young.

Both Stonewall and DGLA endorsed Erin Moore over Paula Blackmon in District 9.

And in District 14, both organizations endorsed Councilman Philip Kingston over challenger David Blewett. In this race, Take Back Oak Lawn issued a warning:

Take Back Oak Lawn is issuing a BALLOT WARNING against voting for David Blewett for Dallas City Council D14

We have long maintained a policy of not weighing in on electoral politics, but when the outcome of an election presents danger for our community, a roadblock to progress in Oak Lawn, LGBTQ issues, and the possibility that the LGBTQ community will find itself without an ally in half of the gayborhood, we feel we must speak up. This candidate has behaved in ways that we find concerning and believe deserve deep scrutiny:

1) His interactions with local LGBTQ political organizations have been troubling. He refused to fill out the questionnaire for the Stonewall Democrats of Dallas, and while he did fill out one for Dallas Gay and Lesbian Alliance (DGLA), his interview with them revealed a stunning lack of knowledge about the LGBTQ community, and he has shown no sincere effort to rectify that lack of knowledge.

2) He has refused to address the rise in violence against the transgender community as anything more than a general safety issue, refused to mention the victims names or to acknowledge the fear and anger this has generated in the LGBTQ community. When pressed, he said saying Muhlaysia Bookers name and acknowledging the specific threat to the transgender community would be “political”.

3) He has repeatedly dodged requests for him to either a) hold a public forum where the LGBTQ community can ask direct questions or b) publicly debate his opponent on LGBTQ issues.

4) He has demonstrated a refusal to engage on LGBTQ issues other than to repeat that he “personally supports gay marriage” though he believes “the government should stay out of it,” or that he would be glad to discuss the matter privately.

5) He has stated that he will be attending the Pride Parade, but “only for political reasons.”

6) He has signaled support for continued over development of Oak Lawn that would lead to the demise of the remaining affordable housing in the neighborhood. He would support development that would push LGBTQ individuals out of the Gayborhood in Oak Lawn.

It is our belief that true allies do not hesitate to engage with communities they wish to serve. They admit deficiencies and work to correct them and do not have to be arm wrestled by the community to address issues of importance.

With the current political and social climate, we cannot entrust leadership of half the Gayborhood to someone who has chosen not to engage our community and who remains willfully ignorant of the issues we face every day. David Blewett’s election would be a danger to LGBTQ safety, a roadblock to progress on LGBTQ issues locally and leave us without a champion in crisis situations.

You do have a choice.. the incumbent, Philip Kingston has had our community’s back every time we have needed him and we can count on that relationship to continue. Please don’t let David Blewett’s “civility politics” cloud your vision- he is absolutely a danger to vote for and must be opposed unequivocally. Please vote accordingly. Thank you.

Early Voting is now underway until June 4 and election day is Saturday June 8. The Oak Lawn early voting location is Reverchon Recreation Center, 3505 Maple Ave.