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ODESSA — Cal Hendrick, an insurance attorney pledging to return the City Council’s attention to everyday issues, defeated Javier Joven in this West Texas city’s mayoral race.
“I told people I had a vision. I have a job to do,” Hendrick said. “And we need to roll up our sleeves and start getting the job done. I don’t want to have an excuse in four years. The job starts immediately.”
Council members Mark Matta and Denise Swanner, two of Joven’s closest allies elected with him in 2020, also lost their reelection bids. All three lost by wide margins, according to unofficial election results.
Joven, in a statement to The Texas Tribune, congratulated Hendrick and other winners.
“I’ll keep them in my prayers,” he said.
The results close Joven’s tumultuous term after spending the last three years fending off criticism about his priorities — which critics said had been laden with social issues that distracted the council’s attention. Joven was unapologetic about his faith and the role it played in his governing style and priorities.
[Odessa’s mayor ran to help the West Texas city “repent.” Now he wants a second term.]
Now, Hendrick said he plans to make good where he said the current council fell short.
Hendrick said he would support lower taxes, revive regular trash services and fill the ranks of the city’s police force and emergency services. He would put a 2019 water plan in place to replace the city’s roughly 700 miles of aging water pipes, whose disrepair has resulted in two citywide outages in two years. And he plans to implement a 75-page transportation plan to fix roads.
Hendrick will not seek to repeal an anti-abortion ordinance or ban on certain restrooms for transgender people the council passed under Joven — two issues considered a cornerstone of his platform. It will not be part of the council’s business, he said.
“I don’t see how I can enforce anything that’s been passed. It’s a non-issue,” he said, referring to the ordinances. “I do not see it as a part of my future. I’m going to focus on what’s important to this city. Things that happened in the past are already there, whether I agree or disagree. That’s not what people elected me to do.”
He also suggested the council should evaluate whether to keep John Beckmeyer as Odessa’s city manager. “Is he the right person to lead this city for the next four years? And that’s something that will have to be discussed.”
Hendrick’s campaign jabbed Joven over his governing style. Spending under Joven, Hendrick said, increased by 20% and he lambasted Joven for voting to increase utility fees at least nine times and to increase property taxes on three occasions.
He said the council failed to address understaffing among police officers and fire rescue employees. He also criticized the city’s bookkeeping, noting that Odessa’s credit rating briefly dipped during Joven’s tenure.
During the campaign, Joven said the attorney would promote a progressive platform, which he said countered Odessa’s conservative spirit.
Joven has also accused Hendrick of representing a bygone era of politicians in Odessa who left the City Council with growing infrastructure problems. Hendrick forcefully disputed the comparison.
Hendrick comes from a family of cattle ranchers who settled in Odessa in 1880 from Uvalde. He graduated from the University of Texas at Austin’s law school in 1990. A former litigator, Hendrick represented oil and gas companies in court for decades.
Disclosure: University of Texas at Austin has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here.
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