I am proud and honored to have served this great city for the past six years as YOUR City Council person and for a year prior as a Planning & Zoning Commissioner. It was a fantastic experience and was arguably the most important and productive six years in the history of Frisco.

 

Campaigning for Mayor over the past few months was a fantastic experience. While the outcome wasn’t what we expected, I have absolutely no regrets at all. Everybody involved should hold their heads high and be proud of the fact that we stayed true to ourselves the entire time and focused on issues and the people of our city. Erika and I are doing great and looking forward to re-focusing our efforts in many different areas.

 

That being said, I am deeply humbled by the outpouring of support that we received throughout the campaign as well as the very nice notes that I have received since. I always knew this and am now even more convinced that our supporters are some of the most loyal, dedicated, friendly and nicest people. We met so many people throughout the campaign and made many new friends.

 

So many people gave of their time, talent, and treasure for a cause they deeply believed in – that of electing Matt Lafata as the next Mayor of Frisco. I honestly don’t know how we ever repay people for their support and generosity and their belief in me and a better Frisco for all of us.

 

First and foremost, God. Nothing else can happen if You aren’t the center of my life. Thank you for giving me the grace to keep sane during a very stressful time and for reminding me what is truly important in life. Only You know my heart and I thank you for giving me wisdom to make good decisions during the campaign through your guidance. I also want to thank our dear friend Pastor John McKenzie for the encouragement and for saying the right things just when I needed to hear it. Thank you to my family. My wife Erika is the most amazing person I have ever met in my life. She is my soul mate and my partner in life. She is the voice of reason and poured her heart and soul into this campaign. I love you so much, baby! Our kids were fantastic. They were so proud to wear their campaign t-shirts, to hold signs on election day, to pass out flyers and to tell their friends to get their parents to vote. Thank you also to both my and Erika’s parents for being here during the election and for working the polls for us.

 

Thank you to my campaign manager, Amy. I don’t think Amy really knew what she was in for when she agreed to be my campaign manager but what a fantastic job she did of organizing people. She was always there for me, with a smile and comforting words, and gave so much of herself. I also want to thank Amy’s incredible husband, Kevin, for helping where he could and for being a supportive husband to Amy.

 

Thank you to Sarah, my treasurer, for making sure our reports were in on time and accurate. The political world was new to Sarah and I hope you enjoyed the experience.

 

Thank you to everybody who hosted a “Meet Matt” event. Josephine’s, Isabella’s, Coach Joe’s, CrossRoads Winery, and The Frisco Bar in addition to Walter & Leticia, Aaron and Sharon, Mick & Patricia, John & Bliss, Craig & Karen, Steve & Jan, Nelson & Cheri, Randy & Linda, Jean-Claude & Bonnie, Jim & Debbie, John & Tracey, Dan & Rachel, Marquis & Stephanie, and Dan and Robyne.

 

Thank you to everybody who proudly displayed one of our yard signs as well as those who gave so much time to putting the signs out including John, Brad, Chris, Jeanne R. and so many others.

 

Thank you to those who walked neighborhoods to pass out flyers and postcards including the Frisco Fire Fighters Association, John, Drew, Steve, Jane, Mark, Robin, Leticia, Courtney, Kayla, Dan, Jacqueline, Jeanette, Ric, Genie, George, Steve, Don, Mohammad, Tracy, John, Stacy, Tiffany, Kevin, Ryan, Kaleigh, Connor, Gap, Arline, Rick, Alex, Elizabeth, Laurie, Jim R. and Jim S.

 

Thank you to everybody who worked at the polls including Amy, Missy, Jennifer, Kaleigh, Gap, Arline, Milton, Diane, Brittany, Amber, Kim G., Jun, Laurie, Elizabeth, Steve, Stephen, Nara, Janet, Bliss, John, Rick, Driskoll, Lynda, Gary, Stacey, John, Tracey, Connor, Cameron, Zach, Joshua, Carl, Jamie K., Jim B., Jim R., Rick, Elaine, Kate, Jennifer J., Jennifer H., Wendy G., Wendy S., Tiffany, Nancy, Rochelle, Dale, Roberta, Brad, Anne, Angie, Jim C., Evy, Jamie F., Kevin, Linda, Bill, Karen, Patti, Don, Catherine, Sarah I., Kim C., Jeanne, Sarah M., Matt, Monesa, Jeanette, Alta, Kevin, and Sheri.

 

Thank you to Ryan Michael Galloway, Chad Ireland and Michael “Mudcat” Reames, all members of the Collin County Songwriters Association, for providing the great entertainment during our party on election night.

 

Thank you to all of our financial supporters. Running a campaign like this is not easy and is certainly not cheap. There were television ads, radio ads, postcards, flyers, signs, billboards, business cards, magnets, t-shirts, car decals, print ads, and more.

 

Thank you to Bill and Kim of WebFratelli for web site and graphic support. We had the best looking logos I have ever seen in a political campaign! Kim, your help with some of our ad design was much appreciated…thanks for coming through to meet our deadlines!

 

Thank you to Kayla for selecting me as your political mentor for your Independent Study Mentor program. I enjoyed getting to know you and know that you have a very bright future ahead of you. You are an amazing person and I wish you well in your future endeavors.

 

Thank you to John and Kayla for putting together the really cool YouTube videos.

 

Thank you to anybody and everybody else that helped in any way by talking about the campaign, spreading the good word about what we had hoped to accomplish for Frisco, and any other assistance. We really appreciate it.

 

And finally, thank you to the citizens of Frisco who believed in our message and plans for Frisco’s future and who got out and voted for our candidacy. We are sorry that the election results didn’t end up the way we were all expecting, but please know that you are all some of the greatest people in the world and Erika and I are so blessed to have you in our lives.

First of all, referendum #1. It’s a real shame that this didn’t pass as I truly believe it would’ve been good for our community. More restaurants, clubs and conventions would’ve come to Frisco bringing unforeseen economic benefit and yes, it is a safety issue as well. As it is now, people that want to continue drinking will leave Frisco at Midnight, drive to other communities, drink more and drive back in a worse condition. It is a real shame that fear tactics and misinformation caused this item to fail.

 

Now, onto my thoughts on the Mayor of Frisco. I’m certainly disappointed and quite frankly, moreso for Frisco. It is disheartening to see the way the opponent’s campaign played out, with such negativity and unnecessary tactics, like planting seeds of doubt that were (even proven to be) not true in the first place, just to gain an edge over me. It certainly sets a bad precedent for future campaigns in this city. I’m extremely proud of my campaign supporters for staying above board and keeping our integrity throughout the campaign. Winning this campaign does not define who we are as people, and although it would have been an honor to serve as your Mayor, this is where we are at now.

 

Please pray for Frisco, as we are in such a critical time in our growth.

 

Erika and I will continue to be very involved in our community and with my being termed out this year, I can still run for Council again next year if Erika and I decide this is what we want to do, to stay involved in our governmental process as an advocate for the people of Frisco.

 

Congratulations to all the candidates who gave of their time in this campaign. Campaigning is difficult and I admire all of you for your passion and dedication to making Frisco a better place for all.

 

I have so many people to thank and will do that in a separate message.

 

Happy Mother’s Day to all the Moms out there!

 

Matt

Some of you may have heard about two alleged ethics violations against me. As you may know, it is very easy to file an alleged ethics violation against anyone in public office. (The operative word being “alleged.”) In this case, we had an allegation filed by a former political rival, a person who basically admitted in writing to a media reporter that she has an ax to grind with me, and perhaps most importantly, she and her husband are financial contributors and public supporters of my opponent in the race for Mayor.

 

I’m happy to report that both the complaints were unanimously rejected by the City Council.

 

Every one of us as Council members are elected volunteers who spend a great deal of time doing good for the city. It would not be hard to argue that almost every one of us in one way or another is benefiting through our jobs or businesses by being on the council. That’s not why we do it; it’s just a fact, and if I thought there was any conflict of interest in any vote I have made in the past, I would’ve stepped down, plain and simple.

 

This is no different than somebody filing a bogus lawsuit, anyone can do it, it will eventually reach a judge who may promptly dismiss it as bogus after looking at all the facts. I hope that people see this for what it is and get out and support our candidacy for Mayor this Saturday.

 

The ethics ordinance, as it is written, is not a positive for our city and can open others up to scrutiny. You can go back eight years, and look at every council member and come up with plenty of innocent connections that could be misconstrued as conflicts. The intent is very good, but it will need some refining as we go forward.

 

In any event, thank you for those who have believed in me and saw this for what it was – an attempt to tarnish my reputation for the gain of somebody else. It’s unfortunate , but I am glad to put it behind us.

 

On a positive note, thanks to everyone who has mentioned hearing our various radio and TV commercials. You can see the television commercial here.

 

Please get out and vote this Saturday. The polls will be open from 7am to 7pm at Wester, Staley, and Pioneer Middle Schools. We have seen record numbers during early voting and let’s continue that trend this Saturday. I am looking forward to being the next Mayor of Frisco and appreciate everybody’s support, prayers, and well wishes.

 

 

Matt

There is a quote I love which states, “you can tell more about a man by what he says about others rather than what others say about him.” My opponent has run the most negative, nasty and dirty campaign that I’ve ever seen. We are Frisco and we cannot stand for those kinds of tactics or those kinds of people. If you are sick of the negativity and divisive community that they are trying to create, if you are sick of the elitism they are trying to achieve, and if you truly care about this community, please get out and support my campaign for Mayor. I have remained positive and run a clean campaign from day one and I refuse to stoop to the level of my opponent under any circumstances. We need a leader in a leader’s position, not someone who wants to be an elitist dictator.

 

Just one example is that he is stating that I plan to raise taxes. I have never said such a thing and have absolutely no desire to raise taxes. In fact, I will fight any tax hike, tooth and nail. However, unlike my opponent, I am willing to address the reality of the fact that we MAY face a tax hike in the future based on the amount of debt we have incurred and the slowing economy. Unlike my opponent, I will not bury my head in the sand and pretend it may not happen, and I will not lie to you. You can visit my web site and see the list of initiatives that I will look to accomplish as your Mayor.

 

Ever since I announced my candidacy in July 2007, I have made a personal choice to not publish my supporter list, just as I have chosen to not publish it when I ran for office in the past. I think it is pompous and unfair to put people on the spot like that, especially when we both shared a common group of friends/supporters. I have had conversations with many of the people listed as supporters on my opponent’s list and appreciate him for publishing that for me. What people do in the privacy of the voting booth is their choice; they can be published on a list and still do whatever they wish come time to vote, and nobody will know except that person.

 

I’d like to think that all of you have gotten to know me as a person through this newsletter and you know that I say what I believe and believe what I say. I will never do what my opponent does and say things that I think you want to hear, or flip-flop based on popular opinion as he is doing and has done. I am authentic and true to myself and you will always know where I stand at all times. Love it, hate it, or indifferent, I am who I am and that will not change.

 

Thank you to everybody who has been helping in any way with this campaign. We are so excited about what we plan to accomplish after I get elected as your next Mayor of Frisco and need your continued help in spreading the word and encouraging people to vote early through May 6. More details such as are where and when can be found in the newsletter.

 

Matt

In perhaps the best endorsement handed out so far in this election, the Frisco Fire Fighters Association voted last week to endorse my candidacy for Mayor of Frisco.

 

I am deeply humbled and honored that those who serve and protect Frisco citizens have given me their endorsement.

 

Please join them, and join us in helping secure a victory for Frisco’s future by getting out and voting in this very important election. Take a friend or a neighbor with you and remember, friends don’t let friends vote alone!

 

Have a great week!

 

Matt

 

Early voting is at the College and Fire Station #4 (Legacy/Main) from April 28 to May 6

 

Monday, April 28 – 8-5
Tuesday, April 29 – 8-5
Wednesday, April 30 – 8-5
Thursday, May 1 – 8-7
Friday, May 2 – 8-5
Saturday, May 3 – 8-5
Monday, May 5 – 7-7
Tuesday, May 6 – 7-7

 

Election Day – May 10 – 7am-7pm at Wester, Staley and Pioneer Middle Schools