Brandon Vance

Stonewall Dems VP, DPD community engagement manager are LGBT candidates for District 4 seat

Mathew Shaw | Contributing Writer
mathews.yb@gmail.com

Two openly-LGBT candidates will be among about a dozen candidates competing for a seat on Dallas City Council in a special election on Nov. 6.

Joli Robinson and Brandon Vance are two of the 13 candidates running for the District 4 seat in the wake of former Councilmember Dwaine Caraway’s guilty plea last August on federal charges of accepting more than $450,000 in bribes.

Robinson, who was unavailable for comment, works at the Dallas Police Department as manager over community engagement, and she has been endorsed by The Dallas Morning News.

Vance serves as vice president of Dallas Stonewall Democrats and the Texas Coalition of Black Democrats Dallas chapter. He is also a college advisor for KIPP Dallas-Fort Worth, a public charter school. He first ran for public office in 2016, against U.S. Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-Dallas. He lost to her in the Democratic primaries.
Vance said city council was not on his radar until Caraway resigned. “When [Caraway] resigned, it was kind of those flashing lights like, ‘Here you go, this is the light bulb moment,’” he said. “I feel like I’m being called to do this.”

Vance said it is his background in politics that sets him apart from the other 12 candidates in the race. “I literally got my degree in government,” he said. “I have been known as being a consensus builder.”

Vance received his bachelor’s degree in government from Texas Woman’s University. While there, he became the first black man elected president of the TWU senate in the school’s history, according to his campaign website. He is originally from New Orleans, and he said District 4 reminds him of his hometown because of how friendly and open people are. He moved to the area 11 years ago and bought a house in the district after finishing school.

Vance described the demographics of District 4 as older and more diverse, with large black and Hispanic populations. For him, the biggest issues facing the district are lack of economic development and quality jobs. For example, if people want to go to movie theaters or quality restaurants, he said, they have to go to other parts of the city.

“The people in District 4 have money,” he said. “They like to have a good time; they like to enjoy themselves. and those opportunities aren’t present in District 4.”
Vance cited the upcoming second deck park, set to be complete in 2022, as a possibility for business opportunities for District 4. “I don’t want to see all of the business opportunities going to the west side of I-35, and we just have the entrance to the zoo,” he said.

Vance said he is also concerned about affordable housing and taking care of the district’s seniors. “District 4 and District 7 have the highest number of seniors who have not taken their 65-and-older exemption,” he said.

As for his vision for the future, win or lose, Vance said he wants to keep helping to improve the community. If he loses, he said he wants to be on the homeless commission. If he wins, he is unsure if he wants to aim for higher office.

“I’m just zoned in right now on doing anything I can to show the community that I think I’m the best person for this position,” he said. “I have the knowledge; I have the education, and I feel confident that I have the experience. And now it’s just convincing the community to take a chance on me.” █