Outside influence is a given in Dallas politics. But an opposition campaign launched by a local online pundit sparked controversy — and allegations of homophobia — in the last election.
Damien LeVeck — the voice behind a social media account called Dallas En Fuego — had a hard-edged strategy to urge votes away from certain candidates than the near-silent financial political influence wielded by the Dallas establishment for decades.
LeVeck recently took aim at incumbent Council Member Chad West’s sexuality in the May local elections, referring to him a “Bathhouse Chad.” West — who is openly gay and has spent years working in Dallas politics — categorized one of LeVeck’s videos as homophobic.
LeVeck also dubbed incumbent Council Member Adam Bazaldua the “fry cook” — a name he told KERA was “a demeaning” way to refer to Bazaldua’s culinary school background.
And a video that appears on LeVeck’s YouTube channel includes an AI-generated image of Council District 11 candidate Jeff Kitner with an exposed belly. LeVeck’s nickname for Kitner: “Jolly Jeff.”
Anything goes?
LeVeck’s criticism of West homed in on some of his reported campaign expenditures. Those include funds paid directly West for “contract” labor — and money spent at a bathhouse and two gay-themed bars.
It was the latter that sparked criticism from the incumbent.
“I don't know how better to describe it other than it's a kind of an anything goes attack to take people out of office that you don't agree with,” West said in an interview with KERA.
LeVeck told KERA he doesn’t care “what a grown man or grown woman does in their free time with their own money” and said the video was aimed at what he said is “the lack of ethics and using donor funds for lifestyle purposes.”
Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University, told KERA personal attacks have always been part of these races. He stressed that today, attacks against a candidate’s sexual orientation are “very much in the Republican wheelhouse.”
But he added that conservatives and their candidates are different.
“Not as many Republican voters as Republican candidates believe that those kinds of charges are critical, are sort of dispositive, should make up your mind for you,” Jillson said.
West won reelection with 58.78% of the votes in his district. Along with him, every other Dallas City Council incumbent secured reelection.
‘Combing through stuff’
The spending — other than the contract labor — highlighted by LeVeck amounts to $256.10.
That’s $20 at Eagle Wilton Manors Bar and $96.58 at The Pub on the Drive — two bars in Florida. West also expensed $139.52 at Crew Club D.C. — a bath house catering to men in Washington, D.C.
He told KERA that the money spent in Florida was with a group of personal friends, some of whom were already campaign supporters — and others who became supporters after.
“Some of the wives wanted to go to a gay bar. So, we went to a bar, and I bought a round of drinks and I felt it was appropriate because we were talking about campaign-related things to use the campaign [funds] for that,” West said.
In D.C., West said he was with a “major contributor” from the Victory Fund — an organization founded in 1991 by activists to support LGBTQ+ political candidates.
“We stopped by there beforehand and went to dinner afterwards,” West said. “I was in DC on city business. Obviously, that was not appropriate to use city funds on that and we were talking all night about politics and so it was very much campaign related.”
But when West filed the report, he listed the expense as “supplies,” according to records held with the city. LeVeck filed a complaint with the Texas Ethics Commission over the expenditures.
State regulators did not hand down any civil penalty for the spending, according to documents reviewed by KERA News.
West says he isn’t alone in this type of spending. Other elected officials have spent campaign funds on similar situations and events.
District 2 Council Member Jessie Moreno spent just over $900 on a stay at the Biltmore Hotel in Miami just over two weeks after winning his race in 2023.
"I used campaign funds for campaign related expenses," Moreno told KERA in a statement when asked for comment about whether the spending was a valid use of campaign money.
District 12 Council Member Cara Mendelsohn expensed almost $4,000 at Casa Pollastro during the 2023 election for what she listed as an election party. She ran unopposed that year.
Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson spent over $1,000 to pay for his Harvard Club membership in 2023.
He spent another $1,716.86 in August 2023 — months after winning reelection — at the New York City club for a “meeting with interested parties,” according to campaign finance records.
KERA reached out to Mendelsohn, Johnson and the city's communication's office to ask about the expenditures.
Neither Mendelsohn or the mayor responded to the request for comment. Alice Rios, one of the city's communications staffers, told KERA "campaign related questions need to be made to the Texas Ethics Commission."
West said spending campaign money on food and drinks isn’t unusual.
“I have done that many times at other types of establishments that are not gay…but [LeVeck] doesn't call out,” West said. “And, you know, my question is why? Like, why is it a challenge to spend money at a gay establishment in another city versus a straight establishment in that city?”
Whether it’s the norm or not, Jillson stressed politicians should be aware someone may be “combing through this stuff.”
“It's probably unwise to charge bathhouse charges to a political account, just as a political matter, just as sort of common sense,” Jillson told KERA. “In my view, it’s not a matter of human rights. It's a matter [of] political judgment.”
‘My whole positions with Dallas En Fuego’
West told KERA his mission with Dallas En Fuego isn’t just to “pick on” West.
“…[it’s] to pick on all the city council members for anything that they do that’s stupid,” LeVeck said. “Chad’s in good company.”
District 7 Council Member Adam Bazaldua was dubbed the “fry cook” by LeVeck in online videos and posts. LeVeck said the nickname is “just a sort of demeaning way of referring to him.”
“I don't personally think that Adam could be employable outside of city hall...if he ended up on a fry cook line, that would be fitting.” LeVeck said.
Bazaldua graduated from the Texas Culinary Academy in Austin and worked in the hospitality industry in New York City and Dallas before becoming a culinary teacher at two Dallas ISD schools, according to his campaign website.
“Jolly Jeff Kitner” is LeVeck’s name for the District 11 candidate facing a runoff election next month.
“Have you ever seen Jeff?” LeVeck responded when asked by KERA to explain the origins of the name. “He looks pretty jolly, doesn’t he?”
LeVeck said he “wouldn’t look too deeply into” the nickname, when pressed for a firm answer by KERA.
A recent video of LeVeck’s depicts an AI rendered Kitner sitting at a table with what looks like crumbs on his shirt.
Another scene from the video shows Kitner sitting with a coffee-stained shirt hiked above his stomach. Kitner told WFAA — who first broke the story about the video — that he was “disappointed” in the campaigning.
‘A lone voice crying in the wilderness’
Dallas’ business elites, nonprofit leaders, former-elected officials and developers have long promoted their political preferences with financial incentives.
When the city decided to ask Dallas voters to weigh in on issuing over $1 billion in bonds for projects — a coalition of business leaders formed a PAC to help get the package passed.
The Crows — a family of developers well known for their influence in Dallas and across the country — regularly give thousands of dollars to city council candidates.
This election wasn’t any different.
LeVeck’s strategy was the opposite. Although his wife, Natalie, is listed as giving small donations to incumbent challengers across the city, LeVeck used his Dallas En Fuego persona to make his views known.
He has filed at least one Texas Ethics Commission complaint against West for the campaign spending — alleging that funds weren't used for official campaign related expenses. Beyond that, he told KERA he’s focusing on the ethics behind the spending — and said he didn’t believe the assertions that his video was homophobic.
“I think that that is an easy excuse or an easy way to be slinging mud as a way to distract from the actual issue at hand,” LeVeck said. “I think that sometimes some people can get pretty sensitive about this sort of thing, especially if it has to do with someone who's of a particular sexual orientation.”
Later in the interview with KERA LeVeck doubled down on his stance, calling the accusations that his video is homophobic “a distraction.”
“I was careful with the way that I worded everything, because I have gay friends,” LeVeck said. “I have people who are very close to me who are gay, and I don't want to upset that community or those people in any way.”
He added that he realizes as a commentator “you’re never going to make everybody happy.” LeVeck has used other
West said that when he first got into politics — during the Clinton and George W. Bush administrations — he didn’t see these types of personal attacks.
“The attacks were based on policy issues, not on sexual orientation, race, someone's weight,” West said.
Regardless of the attacks, West and the rest of his incumbent colleagues won reelection — and LeVeck’s campaign was, seemingly, unsuccessful.
Jillson said that’s normal.
“It's very difficult for a lone voice crying in the wilderness to break through and dent what the people who are going to turn out know about these candidates,” Jillson said.
“It’s hard for that to overcome the incumbents name recognition, fundraising advantages, political machine already in place, volunteers, that sort of stuff.”
Got a tip? Email Nathan Collins at ncollins@kera.org. You can follow Nathan on Twitter @nathannotforyou.
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