San Antonio’s Ethics Review Board on Monday will hear a complaint against Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones, which alleges she improperly used city resources in a bid to lure the 2028 Democratic National Convention.
The complaint, filed three months ago by Bexar County Republican Party Vice Chair Kyle Sinclair, concerns a letter Jones sent to DNC Chair Ken Martin encouraging him to consider San Antonio for the conference. Cities regularly try to attraction national political conventions in hopes of attracting tourism dollars and media exposure.
However, Sinclair alleges Jones broke the city ethics code because she corresponded with Martin using official city letterhead. Officials are barred from using their official position or city resources, such as the city seal and letterhead, for private or political purposes, the complaint states.
In comments to the Current, UT-San Antonio political scientist Jon Taylor said “a pretty big stretch.”
“I think it’s political postering,” Taylor said. “Any mayor worth their salt is going to try to attract something like this because of the potential economic impact. It’s like having the Super Bowl in town. It doesn’t matter if its red or blue. What matters is green, and lots of it.”
Taylor also said that it’s not uncommon for mayors to use official city letter head on letter to try to attract business.
Even so, Sinclair told TV station KSAT that he would drop the complaint if Jones, a Democrat, is willing to also send a letter to the Republican National Convention promoting San Antonio as the host city for his party’s upcoming convention.
Stay tuned.
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