Weslaco votes in new mayor

The blazing heat radiating off the asphalt didn’t keep Weslaco’s mayoral candidates Buddy de la Rosa and Miguel Wise from campaigning outside City Hall on Saturday.

Wise handily won the runoff election, nabbing 68.49 percent of the vote and making de la Rosa the city’s first incumbent mayor since 1987 to lose a bid for re-election. Terms are three years.

The mayor-elect said the first and most pressing issue for the city is to get its financial house in order.

“We need a fund balance for at least three months to be stable,” he said, referring to the amount of rainy-day reserves needed to keep the city government operating for that duration.

However, Wise wasn’t focused Saturday on planning out city finances or the need to improve municipal water output — two issues that were key to his campaign platform. As he passed out refreshments to voters and campaign volunteers, he grinned and expressed his satisfaction with the steady line of people at the polls.

“I feel very excited about the voter turnout,” he said. “Regardless of which person they voted for, I’m glad people have come out to the polls. It just shows that the people of Weslaco care for their community.”

Dan Treviño, 61, supported de la Rosa, who was elected to the city’s top job in 2007.

“He’s a lifelong resident of Weslaco,” Treviño said. “And he is part of our community. He’s in touch with the community and cares about us, so we care about him.”

Even though de la Rosa will be leaving office, he said he will remain busy working on two statewide pharmaceutical boards.

“I will return to my business and my life,” he said.

Wise brought in 49 percent of the vote in last month's election, falling just short of the majority needed to oust de la Rosa outright and avoid a runoff. De la Rosa received 30 percent last month — more than 1,100 votes. That race’s third candidate — physician Andrew Levine — took in 795 votes, or 21 percent, and was knocked out of contention.

The Weslaco Police Department came together to support Wise’s campaign. Several officers positioned themselves outside the polls to show their support. The president of the police officers union, Alvino Flores, said this was the first election in which the city’s law enforcement officers backed a candidate.

“We feel Wise is the right man for the job,” Flores said. “We feel he brings a sense of professionalism.”

Wise is a former state representative and has lived in a number of places but said Weslaco is the only one he has called home.

“You can take the boy out of Weslaco,” he said, “but you can’t take Weslaco out of the boy.”

LA JOYA

A runoff for La Joya city alderman also took place Saturday. Victorio Salinas won with 53.51 percent of the vote, compared to Gicela Salinas' 46.49 percent. The two are not related.