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Mansfield Mayor Michael Evans felt God told him Julie Short would take his place.Evans, a pastor, told her so in early 2024, as Short geared up her reelection campaign to the Place 5 seat on City Council. The conversation struck a chord with Short. Evans’ sentiment aligned with the mayoral aspirations she also felt the Holy Spirit was calling her to, she said.But Evans and Short interpreted the timeline of God’s messaging differently. Now, the two face each other for Mansfield mayor in the May 3 election. They pitch themselves as the candidate best equipped to handle Mansfield’s growth, though they disagree on what “responsible growth” looks like. Evans always planned to run for a second four-year term as mayor, he said. However, he told the Report his conversation with Short was intended to prepare her to run in 2028.“I said, ‘Julie, I believe that the Lord showed me you’d be next,’” Evans said. “I didn’t tell her that to supplant me.”Short thinks she’s better able to lead Mansfield than Evans. So, after eight years, the council member is giving up her seat to run for mayor. Four candidates are running to replace her. “The Lord did give me a vision 25 years ago of me standing in front of a crowd of people talking,” Short said. “I’m like, ‘I don’t know how that’s going to happen,’ because that is not me naturally, but He’s walked me along that.”Meet the candidates

Michael Evans — Mayor since 2020

Key issues: Strategically developing Mansfield, expanding local amenities, supporting first responders. 

Occupation: 30-year pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, a 155-year-old, predominantly Black church in Mansfield with a capacity to hold 1,200 people in its worship center.

Education: Bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Texas at Arlington; Master of Divinity from Texas Christian University; and a Doctor of Ministry at Baylor University, according to is city bios.

Evans became the city’s first Black mayor four years after serving three terms on the Mansfield ISD school board. He moved to Tarrant County in his 20s after growing up in Houston. Race relations and Black advocacy have played a large part in his pastoral and political career, and he lists “race consultant” on his campaign website and city bios. 

Julie Short — City Council member since 2018

Key issues: Conservative values, small government and transparency. 

Occupation: Realtor and co-owner of Posse Construction, a construction company.

Education: Bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at Arlington in psychology, according to Short’s LinkedIn profile.

If elected, Short would be Mansfield’s first woman mayor. She’s lived in Mansfield for over 20 years, and her previous civic engagements include sitting on Mansfield ISD committees and the city’s Historic Landmark Commission.Mansfield’s growth a key issueThe mayor pointed to his first term’s track record of strategically handling the city’s growth and bringing new community services — such as a pay raise for first responders, new police and fire facilities and luring H-E-B to town — as why voters should support him.Mansfield has about 87,472 residents and is on track to have 100,000 by 2028. Since the 2000 U.S. Census, the city has more than tripled its population.The city is nearly built out, he said, with only about 23% undeveloped land left. Evans’ mission has been to intentionally choose and pursue developers who will attract tourists and sales tax dollars to Mansfield, he said.“We can choose a laissez-faire approach by just letting things happen to us, or we can grow with some sense, we can offer smart growth,” he said. “Smart growth is identifying what you want, what you need, and making it happen. To me, that’s beyond party lines.”Short, like Evans, said she wants Mansfield to grow responsibly and find the delicate balance between apartments and single-family homes.“You can’t just have everything multifamily, or even everything mixed-use, just because it’s the highest taxable value you can get, because it changes your whole city,” she said. “We’re trying to stay Mansfield, but trying to make sure in 50 years we’re still able to maintain our roads.”The candidate wants to see development happening quicker and generating tax revenue as soon as possible, she said. Short wants to streamline the building process and communication between city officials and developers.Debating the role of local governmentShort has a business-minded approach to government spending, she said. Her top priorities include fiscal responsibility and more transparent, open discussions during City Council meetings.Evans said he sees his role in government as a ministry and an opportunity to serve God and Mansfield. His campaign prioritizes strategically developing Mansfield, expanding local amenities and supporting first responders.The two candidates both said they largely managed to work past their political differences when deciding on policies during their time together on City Council.In more than 1,000 votes, they’ve largely voted the same, Short said. Evans said they’ve voted differently about six times.Both candidates say they do not support bringing public transportation to Mansfield. The city’s current pilot of Trinity Metro On-Demand will end in July without renewal. In 2023, Short voted against the three-vehicle trial of the rideshare program, which was 80% federally funded through $171,064 in COVID-19 relief dollars. Evans supported it.Evans, who has supported and received support from local Democrats, has insisted partisanship should stay out of the race for the nonpartisan mayoral position.Short, whose campaign is aligned with Republican groups, said calling local government races nonpartisan is “a farce,” although she noted she is not in politics to push a party’s agenda.“The policies of this city come from your core values, and your core values say which party you align with,” she said, adding she doesn’t judge residents’ partisan beliefs when she meets with them.Though faith is important to both candidates, they disagree about how to use it in their stewardship of the city.Short doesn’t agree with drawing a line of separation between church and state, she said.“If you’re truly following God, you don’t separate that out,” she said. “Every decision I make is based off of it.” While Evans’ faith is central to his mission as mayor, he said he doesn’t “beat people over the head with the Bible.” He wants people to feel their mayor is advocating for them regardless of their religious beliefs, he said.A billboard for Bethlehem Baptist Church, where Mayor Michael Evans is pastor, overlooks U.S. Route 287 in Mansfield in February 2025. (Drew Shaw | Arlington Report)Outside partisan tiesShort’s campaign helped organize a Feb. 20 fundraising event in Mansfield with True Texas Project, a Tarrant County-based conservative activist group formerly known as the Northeast Tarrant Tea Party.During the event, titled “Path to Progress: Restoring Conservative Leadership in Mansfield,” Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare encouraged residents to donate to conservative politicians in the city and “change the direction of Mansfield.” “You are the most important race right here in May, literally, in the entire state of Texas,” O’Hare said in a speech. Standing alongside him were Short and other Republican-backed Mansfield politicians running for election, including current school board President Keziah Valdes Farrar and City Council candidates Lori Williams and Melissa Perez. Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare, in green vest at right, poses with leaders from True Texas Project and candidates for Mansfield City Council and Mansfield ISD school board for a photo at a fundraising event Feb. 20, 2025, in Mansfield. (Drew Shaw | Arlington Report)“This is a time that everyone must come together,” O’Hare said. “Every Republican in Mansfield has to stand with these ladies.”Evans has received support from the Tarrant County Democratic Party and Tarrant County Precinct 2 Commissioner Alisa Simmons. He donated at least $5,400 to ActBlue Texas, a Democratic Party political action committee, according to ActBlue campaign finance reports. In the most recent campaign finance report filed in January, Short reported receiving $10,000 from Team Tarrant PAC, which reportedly has given nearly $200,000 to conservative candidates across Dallas-Fort Worth. The next campaign finance reports are due April 3.Evans said he wants to keep national and state politics out of his race for mayor, calling partisanship “bad for business on the local level.” Instead, he wants to build “consensus bridges” with council members who disagree with him and focus on what they have in common.While Evans and Short disagree on how to lead Mansfield, both will put their faith in voters as they decide which direction their growing city will head for the next four years.Mark your calendar for these key voting dates:

April 3: Last day to register to vote

April 22: Last day to apply for a mail-in ballot

April 22: Early voting begins 

April 29: Early voting ends 

May 3: Election DayYou may check your voter registration status here.Drew Shaw is a reporting fellow for the Arlington Report. Contact him at drew.shaw@fortworthreport.org or @shawlings601. At the Arlington Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.