WHAT ABOUT A.S.A.P. DON'T PETE SEPULVEDA UNDERSTAND?

By Juan Montoya
We looked high and low on next Thursday's Cameron County Commissioners Court agenda for next Tuesday's meeting and couldn't find the item relating to the appointment of a commissioner for Precinct 4.
That was the seat that was vacated automatically when commissioner Dan Sanchez publicly announced Nov. 10 in front of a crowd gathered for a Veterans Day celebration he hosted on the steps of the Cameron County Courthouse on Harrison Street that he was running for county judge.
The Texas Election Code dictates that County Judge Pete Sepulveda  has to appoint someone to replace Sanchez as soon as possible.
However, Sepulveda told a newspaper reporter last November that he was ambivalent on whether he could replace the commissioner with three months left before the primary election.
Sepulveda has expressed that same ambivalence as was reported in a Valley Morning Star article.
"One thing Sepulveda is weighing is whether he, as an appointed official himself, should make the nomination.
“Should I appoint someone as an appointed official myself? Or do I wait the 90 days and whoever the public elects, I appoint to the commission?” he said.
Sepulveda chose the latter, despite the AG's opinion that he name the replacement "as soon as possible."
The Texas Election Code reads:
Sec. 87.042. COUNTY COMMISSIONER VACANCY. If a vacancy occurs in the office of county commissioner, the county judge shall appoint a suitable resident of the precinct in which the vacancy exists to fill the vacancy until the next general election.
And the pertinent Texas Attorney General's Opinion reads:
Texas Attorney General Opinion
Section 65 of Article XVI of the Constitution of Texas makes it the mandatory duty to fill a vacancy. In a conflict between a state statute and the Texas Constitution, the Constitution prevails. In this instance, the Constitution directs the county judge to fill the vacancy as soon as possible for public policy reasons consistent with not allowing such a candidate to be re-appointed to fill that vacancy.

Well, guess what? The election has come and gone and Sepulveda has made no attempt to replace Sanchez, who is in a runoff for the county judge Democratic Party nomination against former Brownsville mayor Eddie Treviño. That election is May 7.
Before the election, numerous residents of Precinct 4 came before the commissioners court to express their dissatisfaction with Sanchez's representation during the time that he has held office. Sanchez had served one four-year term and was just starting his second term this year before the decided to run for county judge following the naming of Carlos Cascos' as Texas Secretary of State by Gov. Greg Abbott.
Upon his resignation, as county judge, the court appointed Sepulveda – then the county administrator – as his replacement until the next general election.
We have learned that there is a move afoot to force Sepulveda's hand in appointing Gus Ruiz, the Pct. 4 winner on the commissioner's race over Basilio Sanchez.
Will it take a court order to force Sepulveda to do the right thing?
We also heard that Sepulveda will be out of town this Tuesday, meaning that the taxpayers will not have any representation because Dan Sanchez will be in full campaign mode at the expense of county taxpayers. His salary, car allowance, health coverage, secretary, etc., is all being footed by the county while he runs for office.
"We're not asking Pete to trash Sanchez," said a Pct. 4 resident who wants Dan Sanchez replaced. "We're just asking him to do his job and follow the law. Why does it have to come down to having a court order him to do it?"