El Paso Politics

Big story with big time implications for elections. I'll break it down later, but here is a proclamation from the Governor's Office setting the recall election for April instead of next November. You can view the proclamation here . TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME : WHEREAS , the City of El Paso has requested that I exercise executive authority to grant an emergency exception to the uniform election date requirements pursuant to Sections 41.001 and 41.0011, Texas Election Code, and to grant a request for a special recall election, pursuant to the city charter; and WHEREAS , the City of El Paso has certified that the City has approved a petition for a recall election pursuant to the city charter; and WHEREAS , the next available uniform election date is lll4ay 12,2012, which is now a restricted uniform election date; and WHEREAS , pursuant to Section 41.001(d), Texas Election Code, the El Paso County Elections Administrator has advised the City that the County will not...

Beto O'Rourke has released a new campaign video discussing jobs in El Paso. I'm posting this because I've noticed that video is becoming a bigger and bigger part of campaigns lately. Cheap to produce, easy to share. Technology is finally being utilized on a regular basis in the election cycle, though I think only two campaigns have an actual YouTube/Vimeo channel so far. But expect this type of stuff to be pretty common by the next election cycle. Here is the rest of his press release: Jobs: Failed Leadership Fails El Paso How's that "working" for you? November 21, 2011 This Thanksgiving week we have so much to be thankful for... Unfortunately, many El Pasoans are not as fortunate.  Over 30,000 El Pasoans are out of work -- and of those who are lucky to be employed, many are underemployed, unable to utilize their degrees or skills to their highest potential. By now you might've seen Reyes' billboards proclaiming that Jobs for El Paso he "works....

If you've seen a Republican ballot you will notice that they occasionally put issues on their primary ballot relating to their platform. These are predominantly social issues and they are meant to strategically ensure that a certain type of base voter will go out to the polls. The Democratic Party is now doing the same and the State Democratic Executive Committee met to discuss some of the issues to be put on the ballot, including marriage equality, abolition of the death penalty, legalization of marijuana, and casino gambling. Most of them failed. Interestingly on the subject of marriage equality both members of Senate District 29 (El Paso) voted in favor of supporting marriage equality when it reached the full floor. SDEC man Don Williams was not able to attend but SDEC woman Yolanda Clay was about to vote for him by proxy. When the issue reached the full floor, she cast both votes in favor. Clay is a member of the resolutions committee and during committee, she voted agains...

Word on the street is that Gary Larcenaire is going to resign from MHMR and send out a press release announcing his resignation today or early this week. Apparently the developments happened over the weekend and there was a meeting involving staff and advisers on Sunday to hash out the messaging and particulars about how he would be leaving. Sources say that the press release will say that he accepted another position out of town, but its no secret that Larcenaire has been under fire since last year about finances. I'm pretty sure the real media will get this info pretty soon, so watch for it in the paper on and the news...

Arguably the most powerful club in the Democratic Party previously hosted Congressman Silvestre Reyes during their last monthly meeting in October. The next meeting is Monday and will feature Beto O'Rourke, the Congressman's opponent for the Democratic Primary. DJ Notorious Boom Boom Here are the details. Don't forget to check out DJ Notorious Boom Boom. I was able to score an exclusive pic of the reclusive and eccentric jet-setting electronic dance music dee jay. El Paso Young Democrats  Cordially invite you to  Cocktail Mixer  Beto  O'rourke US Congressional Candidate Monday, November 21, 2011 5:30 p.m. G&R Mexican Restaurant 401 E. Nevada Ave. El Paso, TX 79902 EPYD Will be offering Appetizer spread Two Cocktails Or Three beers for $10 DJ Notorious Boom Boom Spinning 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Veteran of electronic dance has been jet setting around the globe and feeling the vibe at some of the most prestigious venues in the world, dispensing musical epiphanie...

The El Paso Stonewall Young Democrats are standing by the members of council that are currently the target of a recall, an effort led by Pastor Tom Brown. They will be having an event soon and here is the information. El Paso Stonewall Young Democrats would like to invite you to "Christmas with City Council" featuring Mayor John Cook, Rep Susie Byrd, & Rep Steve Ortega. The trio will be talking to us about the upcoming recall and what we can do to fight back against this war on Equali...ty. This is our last meeting before Christmas, so we saw it fitting to be a Holiday Gala - we will be offering a festive dinner option for $15 a person. We would also like to ask for your assistance in providing a special Christmas to a family we have decided to sponsor from Dame La Mano. (Dame La Mano is a Homeless Shelter for Pregnant Women and their Children... the shelter runs primarily from personal contributions and cannot afford to offer the residents the much needed holiday joy the...

In a rare move, Yvonne Rodriguez who has already announced candidacy for one judicial seat earlier this year has decided to change offices she is seeking. Rodriguez had originally announced for the 388th. Rodriguez will now be seeking another seat on the bench in the 8th Court of Appeals. Rodriguez made the announcement via text message that read: Good evening all: wanted you to be among the first to know that I am running for the 8th Court of Appeals. Yvonne Rodriguez I spoke to Rodriguez about a rumored switch last month and she indicated that she was committed to staying in the 388th race and explained that her materials were already printed for that race. This leaves Don Williams as the front-runner for that seat on the bench, though there are several other candidates in the race for the seat. At this point, it looks like Williams and Laura Strathmann are best positioned to make it in to a run-off. I will get more details as they become available.