Less than two hours after a mayoral debate on NBCDFW.com, Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings and seven members of the City Council endorsed runoff candidate Texas Rep. Eric Johnson as the next mayor of Dallas.
Johnson and current City Councilman Scott Griggs took part in the runoff debate Tuesday at El Centro College.
Rawlings announced his endorsement Tuesday afternoon from the rooftop of the Canvas Hotel on South Lamar Street along side seven members of the Dallas City Council who also endorsed Johnson, Casey Thomas, Jennifer Gates, Rickey Callahan, Lee Kleinman, Carolyn Arnold, Adam McGough and Tennell Atkins.
"These leaders in Dallas want a uniter and they want a leader around that horse shoe. We do not need a divider," Rawlings said.
Rawlings said Johnson will carry on efforts to accomplish big things in Dallas.
"He understands that we have a great destiny in place if we keep our eye on that ball and all pull together," Rawlings said.
Johnson was previously endorsed by former Dallas mayors Ron Kirk, Tom Leppert and Steve Bartlett.
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"The city is moving in the right direction. Things are good in Dallas. Don’t be fooled. We’re not heading over a cliff. We’re on the way up,"Johnson said.
At the debate, Scott Griggs said he is proud of the endorsements he has received from the largest Dallas police and firefighter unions and several other City Council Members including Philip Kingston, Omar Narvaez and Adam Medrano.
Griggs said the endorsements represent the theme of his campaign.
"A new kind of mayor, a new kind of leadership in the city of Dallas, taking Dallas to the future, not the Dallas of the past," Griggs said.
In the debate, Griggs said his campaign is a grass roots movement for a new emphasis in Dallas City government.
"We can change the status quo from where our public safety is, from our terrible roads, from our high taxes. And by focusing on the basics, and having a renewed emphasis and passion for what really matters, everyday life in this city," Griggs said.
The runoff election will be held June 8.
