SAN ANTONIO – As a three-term councilman for his Northeast Side district, Clayton Perry was known as a reliably conservative voice on a largely left-leaning San Antonio city council.
But after November 2022, he is perhaps better known as the councilman who downed more than 15 drinks at a bar, slammed into another car at an intersection, fled the scene and was later found lying in his own backyard by a San Antonio Police officer.
Now, the former District 10 councilman is back as one of 27 candidates to replace Ron Nirenberg as mayor of San Antonio in the May 3 election.
In an half-hour interview with KSAT, Perry called the drunken hit-and-run “the biggest mistake I’ve ever made.”
“I was so far gone I don’t remember anything,” Perry said. “I didn’t remember anything until I woke up the next, next day. And I had no idea what had happened. But going back and taking a look at this whole thing, I know it was wrong.“
Perry said he has been forgiven “by God, my family, the individual that — the young man that I hit — forgave me. I’ve been forgiven across the city” and that he feels compelled by the community and his own heart to run for mayor.
“I’m climbing back out of that hole, and I want to still contribute to this society and to this city that I love,” Perry said.
Part of Perry’s platform is reducing bureaucracy. Asked about specific cuts he’d want to make, he singled out “DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) staff,” which he identified as “ staff on the city, staff that has that role in promoting those DEI-type of initiatives throughout the city on hiring and that kind of thing.“
“‘Do we need those types of organizations to execute what’s required on a day to day basis here in San Antonio?‘” Perry said. “People want better roads. People want more police on the streets. They want lower taxes.”
In an emailed statement, a city spokesman denied the city’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Department is involved in general hiring decisions.
“Recruitment is handled by the Human Resources Department. The DEIA office is charged with monitoring compliance with federal, state and local laws that ensure the fair delivery of City Services to all residents. DEIA does not have a role in hiring beyond filling vacancies within their own department.”
Brian Chasnoff, City of San Antonio spokesman
Perry also called the job-training program the next mayor will inherit, Ready to Work, a “miserable failure.” Perry had already criticized the voter-approved program during his time on council, particularly about the dramatic change between the goals for the program before and after the election.
Estimates for the program ahead of the election focused on 10,000 people getting training every year of the four-year program, for a total of “up to 40,000″ people served.
After voters had approved the plan, the city presented a different picture: 39,000 people interviewed, 28,000 enrolled in approved training and 15,600 were placed in quality jobs.
As of Tuesday, nearly three years after enrollment opened, the program’s dashboard listed 10,570 enrolled in training, 3,334 completed training and 1,913 participants place in an approved job.
Perry suggested the city should help cover the costs for internships and apprenticeships, which city staff said is already part of the program.
“But it’s going through a city bureaucracy that’s spending a good portion of that money before it even gets out there to help where it needs,” Perry said. “Get the city out of it.”
Perry views San Antonio’s 17.7% poverty rate as the city’s biggest challenge and developing and bringing in more business as the solution.
“But you need a real leader to go out there and sit down across a table to a company that’s looking to relocate it from where they’re currently at,” Perry said.
Perry also shared his thoughts with KSAT on infrastructure spending, “Project Marvel,“ as well as possibly combining some city and county efforts, such as public health and libraries.
Perry’s full, 33-minute interview can be seen below.
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