El Paso Mayor Fighting Ouster Over Gay Rights Counts Legal Bills
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Mayor John Cook has amassed $250,000 in debt fighting for his job in El Paso, the sixth-biggest Texas city, after casting a decisive vote to reject a ban on benefits for same-sex partners of municipal workers. The move sparked demands for his recall.
Cook, 65, faces a special election after he backed repeal of a law passed by voters in November 2010 that limits benefits such as health insurance to city employees, legal spouses and dependent children. Texas doesn’t permit same-sex marriage.