Three Running for LG Mayor
The deadline to file for a place on the May 1 municipal election ballot was Friday, Feb. 12. A few last-day filers will provide an interesting city election season, especially in La Grange.
Jan Dockery, who currently represents Ward 3 on the La Grange CIty Council, filed paperwork to run for mayor. Paul Parker also filed to run for mayor. They will face Sarah Mabry, who announced her candidacy early in the filing period. Current Mayor Janet Moerbe announced two weeks ago that she would not run for mayor.
Mabry, a retired local educator, regularly spoke at Council meetings during the early days of the Hope Hill development. Mabry was a critic of the Fayette County Disaster Recovery Team’s (FCDRT) efforts to build the Hope Hill neighborhood for local victims of the 2017 Hurricane Harvey flood. She later supported the project near her home along Horton Street after FCDRT handed the development over to Samaritan’s Purse.
Dockery joined the Council in 2019 after winning a special election to fill an open seat left by the resignation of former Councilwoman Deborah Bradley. Dockery’s opponent in that election was Dusty Littrell, and she won by a vote of 115 to 74. Dockery is a familiar face to many in La Grange, since she works in the checkout department at H-E-B in La Grange. She also worked many years in the elementary school office at La Grange ISD before her recent retirement.
Paul Parker, a retired local plumber and handyman, filed paperwork to run for mayor just before the deadline on Friday. Parker, one of La Grange’s more unique characters, has also recorded two country music albums. For several years he wrote a regular column in the Fayette County Record. In recent years he has dabbled in stand-up comedy.
La Grange City Manager Shawn Raborn said that election law allows Dockery to remain on the Council while running for mayor, since her Council seat is not up for election this year. If she wins the mayoral election, her council seat would become vacant and the City Council would have to appoint someone to fill it. If she loses the mayoral race, she can keep her Council seat, Raborn said.
In other La Grange election news, Katie Gross filed to run against Sandy Hooper for the open Ward 1 seat. Hooper filed last week. The incumbent, Ken Taylor, did not file for re-election. Only the incumbents filed for the other three Council seats up for election this year: Ward 2 - John “Honza” Cernosek, Ward 3 - Bonnie Busch and Ward 4 - Pat Janca.
In Flatonia, five people filed in an at-large election to fill three seats on the Flatonia City Council: incumbents Catherine Steinhauser, Ginny Sears and Dennis Geesaman, along with challengers Pamela Stolarski and Ashley Beeman.
In Schulenburg, Place 1 Councilman Chip Bubela did not file to run for re-election. Only one person filed to replace him, Greg “Wolf ” Thomas. There will be no contested elections in Schulenburg since only the incumbents filed for the other two offices on the ballot: Wendy Fietsam for Place 2 on the Council and Elaine Kocian for mayor.
In Fayetteville, two people have filed to run for mayor, Mike Stroup and Deb Dahlberg-Rowling. Mayor Carl Marino did not run for re-election. Place 4 Councilman and former mayor Ronnie Pflughaupt will not run for re-election, either. Two people have filed for his spot: Glenda Merritt and Emil Knodell. Place 2 incumbent Steve Pavlicek file for re-election. He will face one challenger, Cade Burks.