Escobar’s council seat to be filled by special appointment

CALEXICO — Rather than spending tens of thousands of dollars on a special election, the City Council is considering appointing a successor to Mayor Pro Tem Jesus Escobar, who is leaving o ce Monday to begin his first term on the County Board of Supervisors.

According to Mayor Lewis Pacheco, the council will put the matter to a vote at its next meeting on Tuesday.

“From there would come out with a plan for succession, but

Escobar we cannot pay for a special election,” he said.

The mayor said that once a succession plan is adopted, applicants may declare their candidacies, after which the council will review each case, conduct interviews and make the appointment.

Pacheco said this would not be the first time the city has handled replacing a council member in this manner. It also happened when Louis Fuentes was elected the District 1 supervisor,

“It’s a practice that has been done before,” he said.

Nevertheless, Pacheco acknowledged there will probably be some blowback from the community over the decision, but he insisted the local government lacks the resources to conduct a special election.

A special election would cost an estimated $50,000, money the council believes would be better applied to public safety, such as the fire or police departments.

Escobar, who confirmed Thursday he had submitted his letter of resignation from the council, will be sworn in as District 1 supervisor on Monday. He’ll take the seat previously held by former Calexico Mayor John Renison.

The City Council legally has 60 days from the date of Escobar’s resignation to appoint a successor, which means an announcement should be made no later than the beginning of March.

For his part, Councilman Bill Hodge said he would prefer for purposes of democracy that the city could hold a special election, but he agreed with Pacheco the resources are not available to carry out such a process.

Although the authorities have about two months for the appointment, Hodge said the council will try to make its decision as soon as possible.

“There is a perception among some sectors of the community that the appointment is to be made in the shadows, through favoritism, but I think the new council is aware of this, and therefore we will have a process to follow the protocol and due process,” he said.

Hodge wants the entire process conducted with transparency.

“We’ve done it before,” he recalled, noting the case of the appointment of Guillermo Hermosillo a few years ago.

Some community members are saying on social media that former Councilman Kim Joong should get the appointment. In November’s elections, he finished third to David Romero and Rosie Arreola for the two City Council seats that were open at the time.

Hodge rejected the idea, saying that regardless of his former colleague’s showing in the general election and his occasional good ideas, he does not work well with the rest of the council.

“It is for his character,” he said. While Hodge admitted Kim defends people and had done good things for the city, he added the former councilman is someone who talks a lot, brings few solutions to problems and refuses to collaborate with colleagues.

Nevertheless, Hodge said the nomination process will be open to anyone wishing to participate, including Kim, who he acknowledged has every right to present his candidacy.

As for Kim himself, he said he believes he has the right to be appointed, but expressed doubt the current council would be able to respect voters’ wishes.