Few El Pasoans have heard of Renard Johnson, yet he is receiving large contributions from the local elites in support of his mayoral bid.
His first fundraiser was held at Carlos & Mickey’s on January 30 and attended by Dee Margo and his friends. Next came the secretive fundraiser at the Texas Lyceum in Austin on March 27, hosted by Royce Poinsett, a major lobbyist and former Senior Advisor for Governor Rick Perry.
But the biggest blowout will happen this evening at WestStar Tower, where 83 hosts will contribute a minimum of $1,250 each, raising at least $103,750 in one go!
Among the hosts are most of the royalty of El Paso, including Woody Hunt, Richard Aguilar, Bobby Bowling. Tripper Goodman, Kirk Robison, and Jerry Rubin.
We recently reported that Renard Johnson, whose policy priorities are identical to those of former Mayor Dee Margo, appointed County Judge Ricardo Samaniego’s daughter as his campaign treasurer and “borrowed” Veronica Escobar’s campaign manager.
Like Margo, Johnson claims he will lower property taxes while investing in large infrastructure and capital improvement projects, but the City must issue $601 million in voter-approved debt in FY 2026-2029 and has no money for wishful spending, so he is definitely not telling the truth.
Margo presided over several major property tax increases and supported the issuance of hundreds of millions of dollars in certificates of obligations without voter authorization, and we have every reason to believe that Johnson would do exactly the same.
Johnson, a committed Democrat, is projecting himself as the New Beto while championing the spending priorities of the big developers and their bankers and attorneys.
It remains to be seen whether the indictment of his brother, who served as Vice-President of his company for many years, will impact his campaign since it is unclear how much he knew about the alleged crimes.
PHOTO CREDIT: Film still from the film Marie Antoinette (2006) with the heads of Veronica Escobar and Woody Hunt superimposed upon the two protagonists at center.
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