District 3 city Rep. Cassandra Hernandez, who is about to term out on the City Council, is the first well-known political figure to enter the El Paso mayoral race.
Hernandez announced her campaign for mayor late Wednesday, Jan. 31, only days after El Paso businessman Renard Johnson became the first candidate to enter the race.
If her mayoral campaign fails, Hernandez’s days at City Hall as an elected official are over.
Unlike Johnson, a first-time political candidate with longtime experience in the business sector, Hernandez is rounding out her second four-year term as a member of the El Paso City Council and has a list of achievements to lean on.
Similarly, however, she has at least a few political hurdles to overcome.
An internal audit last year described Hernandez’s use of a city-issued gas card as “excessive” after it was shown that she racked up roughly $6,700 in charges. The audit led to an Ethics Review Commission investigation and, ultimately, a reprimand against Hernandez for violating the city Ethics Code.