Miguel Solis

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Miguel Solis

Prior offices

Dallas Independent School District, District 8

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Elections and appointments

Last election

May 4, 2019

Education

Bachelor's

Lamar University

Graduate

Harvard University

Personal

Profession

District Official

Contact

Personal website

Miguel Solis was a member of the Dallas Independent School District in Texas, representing District 8. Solis assumed office in 2013. Solis left office on November 19, 2020.

Solis ran for election for Mayor of Dallas in Texas. Solis lost in the general election on May 4, 2019.

Biography

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Solis earned a B.A. in history and political science from Lamar University in 2008. He later received an M.Ed. in education policy and management from Harvard University in 2012. Solis' work experience includes serving as an eighth grade teacher in the Houston Independent School District, as a special assistant to Dallas Independent Superintendent Mike Miles, as the director of community affairs for Symphonic Scene, and as a city director for Stand for Children.

Elections

2019

See also: Mayoral election in Dallas, Texas (2019)

General runoff election

General runoff election for Mayor of Dallas

Eric Johnson defeated Scott Griggs in the general runoff election for Mayor of Dallas on June 8, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Eric Johnson (Nonpartisan)	55.6	41,247
		Scott Griggs (Nonpartisan)	44.4	32,918

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 74,165
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General election

General election for Mayor of Dallas

The following candidates ran in the general election for Mayor of Dallas on May 4, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Eric Johnson (Nonpartisan)	20.3	16,402
✔		Scott Griggs (Nonpartisan)	18.5	14,921
		Lynn McBee (Nonpartisan)	14.0	11,324
		Mike Ablon (Nonpartisan)	13.5	10,878
		Miguel Solis (Nonpartisan)	10.7	8,647
		Regina Montoya (Nonpartisan)	10.4	8,440
		Jason Villalba (Nonpartisan)	6.7	5,444
		Albert Black (Nonpartisan)	5.2	4,210
		Alyson Kennedy (Nonpartisan)	0.6	469
	Submit photo	Steve Smith (Nonpartisan) (Write-in)	0.0	21
	Submit photo	Miguel Patino (Nonpartisan) (Write-in)	0.0	8
		Other/Write-in votes	0.1	107

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2	Total votes: 80,871
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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2017

See also: Dallas Independent School District elections (2017)

Three of the nine seats on the Dallas Independent School District board of trustees in Texas were up for general election on May 6, 2017. In District 2, Lori Kirkpatrick and incumbent Dustin Marshall defeated Richard Young, but neither of them received a majority of the vote. Because of this, they faced off in a runoff election on June 10, 2017, where Marshall defeated Kirkpatrick to retain his seat on the board. In District 6, incumbent Joyce Foreman defeated challenger Phelesha Hamilton. Because District 8 incumbent Miguel Solis was the only candidate to file for that seat, the race was canceled. Solis won re-election by default.

Results

This election was canceled due to lack of opposition. Incumbent Miguel Solis was re-elected to the board by default.

2014

See also: Dallas Independent School District elections (2014)

Miguel Solis sought re-election to the District 8 seat against Kristi Lara and Richard P. Sheridan in the general election on May 10, 2014.

Results

Dallas Independent School District,
District 8 General Election, 3-year term, 2014

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Nonpartisan	Miguel Solis Incumbent	68.1%	515
	Nonpartisan	Kristi Lara	23.5%	178
	Nonpartisan	Richard P. Sheridan	8.3%	63
Total Votes				756
Source: Dallas County Elections, "Unofficial Cumulative Results," May 10, 2014

Funding

Solis reported $20,098.10 in contributions and $4,755.08 in expenditures to the school district office, leaving his campaign with $40,997.86 prior to the election. This total includes cash left over from his 2013 campaign.

Endorsements

Solis earned the following endorsements for the May 6, 2014 general election:

• The Dallas Morning News
• Educate Dallas PAC
• Dallas Kids First
• Alliance/AFT United Teachers Political Action Committee (UTPAC)
• MetroTex Association of REALTORS
• The Real Estate Council (TREC)
• Stonewall Democrats of Dallas

2013

Solis first won election to an unexpired term against fellow challenger Kristi Lara on November 5, 2013. The seat due for election in 2014 was vacated by Adam Medrano after winning a seat on the Dallas City Council.

Dallas Independent School District, District 8 General Election, Unexpired 1-year term, November 5, 2013
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Nonpartisan	Miguel Solis	66.2%	840
	Nonpartisan	Kristi Lara	33.8%	428
Total Votes				1,268
Source: Dallas County Elections, "Constitutional Amendment Election," November 12, 2013

Campaign themes

2019

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Miguel Solis did not complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey.

Campaign website

“	CREATING AN ECONOMY THAT WORKS FOR EVERYONE By most measures, Dallas’ economy is booming. We have low unemployment and thriving companies. But too many Dallasites are being left out of this growth, leading to growing disparities and persistent poverty. These divides mirror a sad history of segregation that has fractured our city by race, geography and class. Miguel feels everyone in Dallas should be able to share in our success. He believes the most important step is giving people the skills they need to get good jobs right here in Dallas. That’s why Miguel would expand the career and collegiate academies in DISD and partner with local employers, unions and community colleges to tailor curriculum that will help our people get the training they need for a good job that can support a family. Miguel also knows that wages must keep up with the cost of living if we are to help Dallas families get ahead. That’s why Miguel is committed to raising the pay of low-wage city workers—as he’s done in DISD—and encouraging local employers to do the same. Higher wages reduce turnover, create a more stable workforce, and helps many people avoid having to work a second job to make ends meet. Miguel is the son of small business owners—his father eventually opened a tortilla factory after teaching for many years—and he’s committed to cutting regulations and red tape that hold back the growth of small businesses that can revitalize neighborhoods and create jobs. EDUCATION Miguel is proud of the work he’s done to improve Dallas’ public schools, leading a turnaround that has reduced the number of failing schools from 43 to four and raised pay for teachers and principals. Miguel has also led the effort to dramatically expand English Language Learner (ELL) classes, to ensure that the 45% of DISD kids who speak other languages at home can master English and excel in the classroom. Ending the school to prison pipeline has been a top priority, by putting a stop to out of school suspensions that have criminalized young people, particularly boys of color. But Miguel knows there’s much more that needs to be done to help every child achieve their potential. He would start by expanding affordable Pre-K to 20,000 Dallas children who don’t currently qualify, helping close the achievement gap and providing a critical early start to learning. To ensure our kids are ready for the next step, Miguel would expand DISD’s college and career academies, arming students with the skills they need to get a higher education degree or a good-paying job. And Miguel would continue to look for ways to increase pay for our outstanding teachers and principals who have helped drive the turnaround at DISD. ADDRESSING AFFORDABLE HOUSING & HOMELESSNESS Dallas is the most unaffordable city in Texas, and it’s only getting worse. Miguel will work with the Council to update our zoning and building laws to require affordable housing units be included in new developments. And he’ll leverage the city’s land bank of vacant and undeveloped property to incentivize the building of new affordable housing units across the city. Miguel also believes we must help Dallasites in gentrifying neighborhoods be able to stay in their homes, so they too can benefit from the development of new grocery stores and amenities that have often bypassed their neighborhoods. To end the long, painful history of segregation that has divided Dallas, it’s critical that affordable housing is available in every neighborhood. As we’ve seen in Mayor Rawlings’ push to revitalize South Dallas, we can bring real change to long underserved neighborhoods. But it’s important that those communities have an equal seat at the table when development is being discussed. We can and must create a more inclusive city, and that starts with ensuring a strong supply of affordable housing. Finally, the next mayor must tackle the rising rate of homelessness that is leaving too many people vulnerable on our streets. That starts with making mental health and substance abuse counseling available to those in need, and focusing on providing drop-in centers and spill over shelters for homeless youth who are trying to go to school. Miguel also supports pilot programs like City Square’s tiny homes that serve as starter housing for the homeless. KEEPING OUR NEIGHBORHOODS SAFE Response times for most crimes have gone up over the last few years, as the city has struggled to hire and retain police officers. Too many of our officers are being recruited to surrounding cities and towns because of the rising cost of living. While the city passed a raise for first responders last year, more needs to be done to raise wages and increase the number of officers on the beat. Miguel will work to attract current police officers and firefighters to live in the city by offering housing incentives, while supporting new first responders and teachers with breaks on rent. This initiative would include things like low-interest home loans that can be forgiven over the course of a period of service to the city, salary bumps for police and firefighters who relocate back to the city and earmarks in a housing trust fund that first responders can use to help them secure a home. In addition, it’s important that we create a talent pipeline that will become the next generation of Dallas police officers and firefighters. Miguel is working with DISD high schools and local community colleges to create career pathways for local students to get on a fast track to a career as a first responder. Finally, we must do more to build and maintain trust between first responders and the communities they serve. It’s important that the mayor spend time in every neighborhood, listening to residents’ concerns. Miguel will set the tone for a collaborative city government that works with the people of Dallas by holding weekly Mayor’s Night Out events, where residents can talk directly to first responders and city staff, as well as the mayor. Being visible and letting communities know the mayor is listening to them is vital to building trust. TRANSPORTATION Miguel knows that a mayor’s first responsibility is to keep Dallas a clean, safe and well-run city. He will prioritize filling potholes and re-paving deteriorating roads that slow traffic, damage cars and cause more congestion. DIVERSITY & INCLUSION The echoes of racism and injustice are still present in the segregation of Dallas’ neighborhoods today. Miguel is committed to breaking down the barriers that have divided us in order to create a more integrated city.	”
—Miguel Solis

2014

Solis listed his themes for his 2014 campaign on his campaign website:

“	The next three years in Dallas ISD present multiple opportunities to continue to transform the district into a premier urban institution. These potential opportunities include the creation and implementation of a new teacher evaluation and compensation system, a new principal compensation system, comprehensive early childhood, facility, and school choice plans, and the decision to retain the current superintendent or select another. I seek re-election to the District 8 seat because these and other issues will require steady, thoughtful, and focused leadership that keeps children at the forefront of every decision. I hope to continue to serve our community, and will work hard every day to make sure that all of our kids get the great education they deserve. Great Teachers Matter Developing high quality teachers is the most important factor in determining the future of the children we serve. As a former Dallas ISD teacher I know the monumental task our educators face day in and day out. The work is not easy and all help is appreciated. I believe that the current evaluation system we employ is inadequately supporting our educators. Our educators deserve an accurate, real-time assessment of the quality of instruction they are providing their students and a system of professional support that develops the growth of their instructional knowledge and skills. And finally, the time has come to pay teachers what we all know they are worth. If we truly believe that teaching is the most important profession of our time, then it’s time we start putting our money where our mouth is. Success Starts Early Establishing a comprehensive early childhood education plan will allow us to “get ahead of the game” by investing early in our children’s learning and development. There are currently more than 17,000 three and four year old children not accessing public pre-kindergarten through Dallas ISD. I have called on the administration to create a comprehensive plan aimed at maximizing the number of children ages 0-5 who have access to high quality early education. The plan should focus on creating more slots for pre-kindergarten by maximizing state dollars and efficiently using our facilities-doing everything we can to make sure every child in our district has access. I also plan to build strong public/private partnerships. This is an important issue for our entire community and we should all be involved and invested in it. As your school board member I will continue to reach out and build strong public and private partnerships across the community to help support and advance this initiative. Getting Governance Right Having served as a trustee for the past six months, I’ve learned a lot about what the job takes, and what we need to do to move our district forward. As your trustee, I have a clear track record of staying focused on this role, and working with my fellow school board members, community members, and the administration to make decisions that put kids first. That’s what we all should be doing as school board members: focusing on moving our district forward, and putting aside politics to ensure all our kids get a great education. When it comes to something as important as the education of our kids, personal political conflicts have no place, and distract us from the important work at hand. If re-elected, I will continue to stay focused on moving the district forward, ensuring our kids get a great education, and holding the administration accountable to the job they were hired to do.	”
—Miguel Solis (2014)

2013

Solis listed themes for his 2013 campaign on his campaign website:

“	Every day, I think about Dallas ISD students who are heading off to schools across the city, ready to tackle another day of classes with the hope that their education will turn their dreams into reality. Making sure that our students’ education actually leads to better opportunities is our responsibility. I am the son of a public school math teacher that ensured every one of his students was successful. Following in my father’s footsteps, I served as an 8th grade history teacher in Dallas ISD and fought each day to ensure that all of my students were prepared for success. I know that a high quality education is the key to a bright future. I am certain that together we can continue to transform the Dallas Independent School District into the best education system in the nation. I am running for the Dallas ISD District 8 Trustee position because I want to help make Dallas’ public education system the great equalizer for all of the children of this city.	”
—Miguel Solis (2013)

See also

2019 Elections

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