Editorial: What happens after Councilman Kevin de León’s apology tour?
As Kevin de León continued his campaign to run for County Mayor, the issues surrounding his opponent came to light.
When it was noted that de León, a San Antonio businessman and Councilman, had received campaign contributions from the El Paso County Commissioners Association (ECA) and the El Paso County Republican Party when he ran for City Council, he explained that it wasn’t about who he actually voted for on City Council and he promised to reimburse the contributors.
But, now that the matter has come to light, he says that he doesn’t have much to apologize for. The only thing he had to apologize for was not having enough money to pay his campaign staff.
He said “it is regrettable and not something I am proud of, to say that I would not be able to do a complete campaign if it came down to, I have a campaign bank account or I do not have a campaign bank account.”
De León is not the first Councilman to apologize and ask for donations back after running for office. Councilman Mike Villarreal, who ran for election in 2014, said he didn’t intend to cheat or steal the money that donors gave to his campaign.
The ECA and its chair, Eric Hargan, who received a $2,000 contribution from de León when he ran for the Texas Legislature, called for his ouster. The de León campaign called the ECA to cancel its donations and threatened to sue the group for causing damages.
A De León spokesperson said that his campaign committee has refunded $1,000 to $2,000 in donations collected from ECA donors and that all donations will be refunded.
Here is what happened after being outed as the owner of a home business that he claims never came close to generating any income.
* De León apologized on Thursday night and said he would contribute $1,000 to the campaign of the City Council candidate he defeated on the November 6th election. He also said he would donate another $5,000 to other council and school board candidates.
* De León resigned his seat on the City Council at his own request.
* De León, who has owned and operated a day care in south Austin, claimed that his business never made any money because of an incorrect tax code. As evidence, he cited
