Debate over city spending, debt and economic growth is at the center of Waco’s mayoral race.
Single-term Mayor Jim Holmes is facing challenges from David Howard Ponder and Aiden Morgan. Holmes, an investment banker, has served on the Waco City Council since 2016 and has been mayor since 2024.
Early voting runs from April 20 - 28 for the May 2 local election, which also features a contested District 1 race.
Debt Management + Infrastructure Spending
Ponder, a former public school teacher and recent Waco transplant, argues the city’s current debt levels are unsustainable.
“Doing really expensive infrastructure projects that aren’t really suitable — I’m not opposed to that — but I think what’s more important is debt reduction,” Ponder said.
The city of Waco’s most recent budget includes about $1.6 million in debt obligations, much of it tied to infrastructure needs such as water treatment systems, sewer lines and road repairs.
Ponder said he would conduct a city audit to identify the largest expenditures and consider reducing funding in some areas — potentially including public safety — to lower the city’s debt.
“The Waco economy is a laboring economy, and I want the city government cost outlays expenditures to match that,” he said.
Holmes defended the city’s approach, pointing to efforts to balance growth with maintaining services while lowering the tax rate during his time on council.
“We still want to provide solid public services,” Holmes said. “We’ve had faster response times in both [police and fire] and the lowest crime rates in over 30 years.”
Over the past year, the city cut about $32 million from its budget by eliminating vacant positions and reducing hours at community centers and parks. Holmes said those decisions were necessary to maintain infrastructure improvements without increasing taxes.
“We are very careful about the tax rate — we’ve lowered it every year in the eight years I’ve been on council,” he said. “We’re very conscious about the load on the residents.”
Economic & Workforce Development
Both candidates agree Waco’s roughly 25% poverty rate — nearly double the statewide average — must be addressed through economic development and workforce training, but they differ in how to get there.
Holmes pointed to initiatives like WorkSITE, a partnership between the city, McLennan County and Texas State Technical College, which provides specialized training for jobs in the industrial park.
“We have the workforce here, and a big part of it is addressing the gap,” Holmes said.
Ponder said he supports existing workforce programs but would prioritize a more traditional apprenticeship model that integrates job training with business education.
“To have options where it’s not just skill, but also the business side, where early in life you can start pulling some money other than minimum wage,” he said.
He also said he would shift funding away from large infrastructure projects, such as the downtown redevelopment effort, and toward workforce development.
“It’s kind of a different philosophy of writing big checks for infrastructure versus human capital development,” Ponder said.
You can listen to Holmes' full conversation below.
You can listen to Ponder's full conversation below.
Aiden Morgan, who is also challenging Holmes, did not respond to multiple requests for an interview.