FIREWORKS OVER MAILER CLAIMS IN JP 2-2 PRIMARY RACE

By Juan Montoya
A mass mailer sent to prospective voters in the race for Cameron County Justice of the Peace 2-2 race is raising eyebrows with some supporters of the incumbent defending the claims in it and his opponent's adherents vociferously countering its claims.

Incumbent Jonathan Gracia, who beat Yolanda Begum in the Democratic Party primary runoff in 2014, mass mailed the flier about a week ago where he makes his pitch for reelection and touts his performance as a full-time judge, making donations to worthy causes, and comparing his credentials to his "opponent" including one saying he is more"high energy" than him.

There are three challengers for the position including Cameron County Sheriff Department Captain Javier Reyna, former Pct. 2 Constable administrator Fred Martinez and Cameron County District Court Supervisor Diego Alonzo Hernandez.

Gracia is a practicing attorney and also justice of the peace drawing a $53,000 salary for the elected position. His offices, as are the offices of the other two Brownsville JPs (Linda Salazar and Mary Esther Sorola), are on the second floor of the Cameron County Levee Building housed in the refurbished Wells Fargo Bank building.

And while a graphic in his mailer shows all their names on a ballot (see graphic) another page of the mailer asks voters to not be fooled by his opponent (singular) and lists four characteristics which Gracia claims makes him a better candidate for JP 2-2 than his "opponent" Reyna.

"What does that mean?," asked a Martinez supporter. "Is he writing off Fred and Hernandez already and saying he is going to be in a runoff with Reyna?"

The comparison the flier does with Reyna are on judicial experience, being an attorney, a university graduate, donating to organizations in Brownsville, and being "high energy."

Supporters of the other three candidates say the flier is somewhat misleading because none of the five categories listed by Gracia against Reyna are required by law. They point out that the State of Texas only requires a candidate to be a U.S. citizen at least 18 years old, to have resided in Texas for a year and six months in the precinct, and be registered to vote, it also does not require one to be a practicing lawyer or judge.

But aside from the fact that Gracia's flier ignores the two other candidates and lists Reyna as his only opponent and lists him with having judicial experience, being an attorney, etc., it is the "high energy" category that irks his opponents' supporters to no end and has set the courthouse talking.

"Everyone knows that Reyna has been battling cancer for the past few years," said an angered Reyna supporter. "This is like the time that Cameron County Sheriff Republican candidate Victor Cortez touted his age as an advantage he had over Omar Lucio, who is in his 80s. A person's health or his age shouldn't be used against him."

The criticism doesn't stop there. Opponents also take issue with Graci's claim in the flier (twice) that he is the voters' "full-time" judge. They say they have gone to the county and found that he has been assigned cases by the courts since he took office in January 2015. They say they have records showing that he was appointed to 84 cases in 2015, 26 in 2016, and 35 in 2017.
Currently, he is listed as being the attorney or record in at least 60 cases in misdemeanor courts.

And they discredit his "$25,000 donated thus far t the Brownsville Community" claim saying that the county has paid $29,993 in 2015, $35,441 in 2016, and $35,639 in 2017 for his court appointments.

"He may be a fine attorney," said a Reyna supporter, "but he can't claim he is a full-time judge if the record shows he has been busy practicing his craft in the courts while he has held the office."

Will Gracia be correct in predicting he will be in  a runoff with Reyna?

With early voting set to start this Tuesday, February 20, and the uniform election day set for May 5, it will be up to the voters to decide and who they believe.