Will Don Tipps Break DeFord's 1979 Record?

Don Tipps/Screenshot by Inspire Amarillo

Place 2 City Council incumbent Don Tipps might be unopposed this election cycle, but he is still in a race against history. This May, Tipps will have his chance to break a record for unopposed candidates that has stood for nearly 50 years.

In 1979, Place 2 City Commission incumbent Houston DeFord received 17,564 votes as an unopposed candidate, becoming the most successful uncontested candidate in the city’s history. When DeFord won the title in 1979, he broke the record that he, himself, had set just six years earlier.

Since DeFord’s record-breaking re-election in 1979, 16 candidates have run for city council unopposed and failed to break the record. This list includes notable names including Trent Sisemore, Jim Simms, and Robert Keys.

Time will tell whether Tipps can break the record. However, with a campaign already in full motion, it’s possible that he could seize the record on May 3rd.