It was standing room only as people who oppose the growing number of immigrants on H1B visas in Frisco spoke out during a Frisco City Council meeting at the George A. Purefoy Municipal Center in Frisco, February 3, 2026. A large group of Indian decent spoke as well. The activists have called the surge of South Asians immigrants on H1B visas an “Indian takeover” of the city.
Tom Fox/Dallas Morning News
If you deal in politics the way we do, you look forward to local election season like a fire escape ladder in a burning building. And never mind that the better metaphor for state and national politics is a dumpster fire.
Local elections for city councils and school boards thankfully retain at least some sense of decency, with many of the candidates being well-meaning people who genuinely want to serve their communities.
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For most of April, our board met with these folks, from DeSoto to Anna.
Dozens of people came through our doors in hopes of convincing us they are the best person for the office they are seeking. We heard many different stories, problems, plans and hopes for North Texas.
Each time we do this, we try to share with you some of the insights we take away. So here is what we learned about our cities and schools this cycle.
The enrollment cliff has come for our schools
Probably the biggest story for the future of North Texas is one that’s being told school by school. As we talked to school board candidates across the region, we learned they are all preparing for a future with fewer kids and less state money. Some candidates are realistic that this will mean inevitable school closures. And some are hopeful that the kids will, somehow, come back.
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That seems increasingly unlikely. Even as North Texas gains population, we expect further enrollment declines. Districts must plan smartly to consolidate schools, lower administrative and staff costs and otherwise accept that, for the foreseeable future, peak enrollment for most districts is in the past.
Watch your tax rate
We are seeing a growing number of local government candidates get more comfortable with raising city and school tax rates. We couldn’t support Arlington Mayor Jim Ross for re-election after he helped push through a 3-cent tax rate increase. And Grand Prairie wants a nearly 4-cent rate increase for a bond program.
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There are some cases where a modest rate increase is justified. That’s how we feel about Dallas ISD’s $6.2 billion bond proposal. It would add less than $3 a month to the average tax bill, and it would put the district ahead on facilities for a generation.
But local governments need to recognize that people are struggling with costs at every level of life right now. It is time to get back to basics and to examine everything a city and school district spends money on.
National and state politics sneaking in
Voters are often more discerning in local races than they are in state and national contests, where the most extreme candidates win primaries and party loyalty trumps common sense in general elections.
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A few cycles back, we saw a hard push from far-right groups to gain influence on suburban school boards and city councils. That is less pronounced now, and those groups failed to get much traction in Frisco, the prize city.
But it doesn’t mean it has gone away. Some candidates in Frisco pushed the idea that H-1B visa fraud is a major issue in the city. H-1B visas are a common way for well-educated immigrants to get green cards. Those pushing this narrative offered scant evidence.
Most candidates we saw pushed back, favoring an inclusive city.
Senate Bill 840 under pressure
In the last legislative session, lawmakers took a bold step to ensure that Texas’ economic power isn’t threatened by rising housing prices. One of the greatest advantages our state has is its affordability.
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In cities with populations greater than 150,000, Senate Bill 840 sharply limits cities’ zoning authority on commercial property. Landowners can use such properties for multifamily and mixed-use development.
We support the idea in principle because NIMBYism is threatening the state’s economy by making it too expensive for young people and families to afford a roof over their heads.
But this election cycle tells us that SB 840 is going to come under pressure in the next legislative session. We could find only one local candidate who supported the bill, and he had to have it explained to him by our board before he made a decision. Those candidates who actually understand the bill recognize that their voters are entirely opposed. Of any issue you can think of, supporting SB 840 is the fastest path to defeat in the suburbs.
The bill does need refinement to ensure that community standards are upheld in construction (we heard a lot about low-quality buildings) and that respect is paid to well-established master plans. But SB 840 should not be scrapped. We cannot afford to let Texas become like East and West Coast states, where it is all but impossible to build what the market demands on your own land because locals refuse to accept change.
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Have hope about democracy
Each election cycle, we worry more about the quality and knowledge of political candidates. In state and national elections, we regularly meet with people who are either misinformed or malignant or both.
Their sources of information frequently flow from partisan sources and algorithms. They have little regard for the possibility that their ideas might be wrong, and they are offended by questions that might challenge them.
Local races are different. There are plenty of misinformed candidates. But even those tend to run with a heart of service.
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What’s more important is there are plenty of people who are well informed, who have already rolled up their sleeves to serve on boards and commissions for their cities or on bond committees for their schools, or on the PTA or the chamber of commerce.
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These are the sorts of people a democracy needs.
We hope you will spend time with our Voter Guide and our recommendations in local races. That way, you can get to know who they are, so you can go cast a vote for them.
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Have thoughts about this? Send a letter to the editor using our letters form or email letters@dallasnews.com. Letters should be no more than 200 words and include the first and last name of the writer and city of residence.