Two Mission CISD trustees sworn in, recount demand prevents third
Two new Mission Consolidated Independent School Board trustees were sworn in Tuesday, though a recount petition for the Place 1 race prevented anyone from being sworn in to that seat.
According to the district’s legal counsel, Mission CISD received that petition just 55 minutes before the board’s meeting started Tuesday.
Unofficial totals from the May 2 elections put challenger Abby Reyna unseating incumbent Veronica “Betty” Mendoza with about 51% of the vote.
Abby Reyna
It was the closest race out of the three contested seats on the ballot this election cycle.
The recount petition meant no one was sworn in Tuesday and that Mendoza will remain on the board for the time being.
“This is not a matter of district discretion; it is the process prescribed by law,” school district attorney Eden Ramirez said.
Ramirez said if the recount results in a different total, the board will have to recanvass that trustee position.
If not, Reyna can be sworn in.
“This information is not a decision on the merit of the recount or the election outcome, it’s simply an explanation for the community that I know has questions about what’s happening tonight,” Ramirez said.
Texas law and the district’s policies did allow it to swear in candidates not involved in the recount: Place 6 Trustee Victor O’Caña and Place 7 Trustee Beto Garza.
After being sworn in, O’Caña promised to lead with “integrity, transparency and heart.”
“This victory does not belong to me alone. It belongs to every person who believed in the vision of stronger schools, better opportunities for our children and a better future for our community,” he said.
The first thing Garza did after being sworn in was give the audience his cell phone number.
“Call me 24/7. I’m here to serve,” he said. “This is my community — this is our community, and I’m here for the next four years and I want to be your voice. I want to be your kids’ voice. I want to be here for every administrator, every teacher, every person that walks the halls of Mission High School — any school across the district. I’m here for you guys.”
The board also Tuesday recognized outgoing trustees Danny Martinez and Petra Ramirez.
Ramirez, a longtime fixture on the board, left her colleagues with some words of advice.
“We haven’t always agreed. And we haven’t, OK?” she said lightly. “But that’s the nature of this work. We don’t have to agree. We all have different walks in life, we all have different backgrounds. We all have different things. But yet as I look at a new team of eight, I have sincere hope for better. If your intentions are pure and you keep your heart fixed on the kids, this district will continue to move forward. Keep it about the children and you will find your way.”
