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-Editorial
Raul Ureña was appointed as Mayor of Calexico during its regular meeting on March 1st and replaced Javier Moreno who held that position for one year and seven months. The vote to appoint Ureña was 4-1 with council member Camilo Garcia voting against it.
Councilwoman Gloria Romo was appointed as Mayor Pro Tem.
“Honored and Ready to lead this City forward into greatness. The road ahead is tight but the work we have been doing will see us through. ¡Viva Calexico!” Ureña said on his Facebook page.
The Calexico Government Code grants the City Council the authority to select the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem. State law does not prescribe a particular method that the City Council must use to select a Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem. Rather, the City Council may select and seat the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem in the manner it chooses.
Rotation
On July 2, 2013, the City Council voted to move the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem rotation from December to July, beginning in July 2013. Previous to the July 2, 2013 city council action, the rotation of the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem occurred in December.
Ureña and Council Member Manzanarez recommended that the rotation be moved to the first regular meeting in February beginning with this meeting on March 1, 2023.
A group of residents attended the meeting asking that councilman Camilo Garcia be named Mayor. On July 2022, the majority of the council re-appointed Moreno for a second consecutive year as Mayor which drew ire among many people since they argued that Garcia should be Mayor as he was next in line.
“The people of Calexico voted for Camilo Garcia and should be allowed to be Mayor,” said former Calexico Council member, Rosie Fernandez.
Moreno said it was a good experience being Mayor and looks forward to working on finishing the Farmworker Service Center in the City of Calexico which will address the need to provide shelter and social services for seasonal farmworkers that work on an annual basis at different locations in the region.
