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Roy West made a successful comeback, winning the 2023 mayoral election with 52 percent of the vote.<\/p>\n
BEAUMONT, Texas – Roy West won Beaumont’s 2023 mayoral election on Saturday, beating Mayor Mouton and challenger James Eller Jr.<\/p>\n
“It’s been an amazing journey,” West said. “I’m just full of gratitude”<\/p>\n
This is the second time West has faced off against Mayor Mouton. After the 2021 election ended in a runoff, West lost to Mayor Mouton by a narrow margin. <\/p>\n
Related: <\/strong>Roy West wins the 2023 Beaumont mayoral election, beating incumbent Robin Mouton and candidate James Eller Jr.<\/strong><\/p>\n “Two years ago, when Roy West and Robin Mouton faced off, it was about the outcome,” said Thomas Taschinger, a political analyst. “Although, Roy West didn’t get 50 percent or more, so there was a runoff and Robin won.”<\/p>\n West made a successful comeback, winning the 2023 mayoral election with 52 percent of the vote.<\/p>\n “Saying, “It’s time for a change. We can do better.’ That will be their message,\u201d Taschinger said. “Sometimes, it works. Sometimes it doesn’t. This time he did it for him.”<\/p>\n According to Taschinger, only 23 percent of Beaumont residents went to the polls. More than 8,000 residents voted for West and more than 7,000 voted for Mouton.<\/p>\n “It just got more followers,” Taschinger said. \u201cWhen Robin Mouton won two years ago, she was the first black woman to win the mayoral race. It was a motivating factor.”<\/p>\n On Saturday night, Mouton told 12News that an ad posted by West about his trip to Las Vegas was not real.<\/p>\n “To say someone spent $30,000 on a trip to Vegas and called Vegas Exotic, that was beneath me,” West said. <\/p>\n Taschinger said he can understand Mouton’s frustrations.<\/p>\n “I can understand why she’s upset,” Taschinger said. “He’s right that all mayors travel and many conventions are held in places like Las Vegas.”<\/p>\n The political analyst believes that even with a victory under his belt, the work for West is just beginning.<\/p>\n “It’s a constant challenge to get more businesses downtown, to stop the flat population that Beaumont has had for years,” Taschinger said.<\/p>\n 12News reached out to West Sunday for comment on his campaign ad targeting Mayor Mouton and did not hear back in time for this post.<\/p>\nAlso on 12NewsNow.com\u2026<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n