El Paso lawyer, activist Veronica Carbajal first to enter race for District 2 council seat

Veronica Carbajal, a stalwart of progressive ideals, has entered the race for the District 2 seat on the El Paso City Council.

A special election is scheduled for Dec. 9 to replace District 2 Rep. Alexsandra Annello, who recently announced her resignation to run for the Texas House District 77 seat being vacated by longtime state Rep. Lina Ortega, D-El Paso.

The special election is only open to voters who live in District 2, which stretches to Hondo Pass Drive in the north and down to the U.S.-Mexico border in the south. It extends west to Moreno Elementary and Bassett Middle School and east along Railroad Drive.

More: Here's what you need to know about upcoming El Paso City Council special election

Since Annello's election in 2017, the Central area of the city has been represented by El Paso's most progressive council member, one who led the charge against abortion investigations and in support of broader LGBTQ+ protections.

In Carbajal, a lawyer with Texas RioGrande Legal Aid and president of the progressive political action committee Justicia Fronteriza, voters can continue that tradition.

Carbajal had initially planned to run during next year's election, when both the District 2 seat and the mayor's seat will be on the ballot, but the opportunity to fill Annello's spot was too tempting to pass up.

"So, I jumped at the chance," she said. "There are a lot of issues that are happening right now that are important to me and I worry about not having a person with knowledge and experience right now. There is no time for a learning curve when it comes to those issues."

Carbajal active in City Hall government

Carbajal mounted her first political campaign in 2020 when she ran for mayor after years of urging from renowned El Paso attorney Enrique Moreno but lost to Mayor Oscar Leeser. She has a history in City Hall policy and politics.

"I've worked with the city and I've worked against the city since 2005," she said. "I've learned so much about things. There are things that are great, but there are also things that can be much better."

Carbajal sued the city over its plan to demolish properties in Canutillo in the wake of a devastating flood but also worked side-by-side with City Hall related to its libraries, Animal Services Department and its now defunct first-time homebuyers program.

"There's a lot I've done already with the city," Carbajal said. "There are certainly other things I could be doing or something else I could be running for, but I keep getting pulled back into city services and I think this is an opportunity I couldn't pass up."

She likewise became highly involved in the fight over Duranguito, pushing the city to shore up historic buildings in the area damaged during the 2021 monsoon season.

"We cannot lose that historic stock," Carbajal said. "We cannot become like Austin in that regard."

Carbajal said Moreno began pushing her toward a mayoral run in 2014, but she shied away from the notion of the possibility of having to raise "funny money," contributions from wealthy donors whose political ideals don't align with her own.

More: El Paso City Council votes to abandon arena in Duranguito, reallocate remaining funds

Carbajal believes that tireless work with nonprofits, city departments and legal teams has prepared her for a seat on the City Council.

"I've had to do a lot with little resources and that has made our team creative and fearless and unwilling to give up and that's what I plan on bringing to City Council," she said. "I learned to work with teams, create teams, bring out the best in people and bring out the best in teams. I've been very lucky to work in an environment where we're collaborative ... and that's the kind of teamwork I've come to expect."

Carbajal has long list of priorities if elected to El Paso City Council

Among Carbajal's biggest priorities if elected to the District 2 seat is the implementation of campaign finance reform in the city, an issue she has been at the forefront of since Justicia Fronteriza offered a series of ambitious proposals last year.

More: El Paso City Council votes to reject groups' propositions to reform local elections

Carbajal said she fears "city staff is trying to dissuade the council" from enacting those reforms.

"We need to limit the impact of big money on local elections and local elected officials," Carbajal said. "I have to do this now. I have to make sure that when campaign finance reform finally comes up for a clean vote on City Council we have someone who understands the policy and understands the player."

She said she regularly hears from El Pasoans complaining that they are being "roadblocked" by City Attorney Karla Nieman, who Carbajal asserted should be shielding the city from litigation and not taking an outsized role in directing policy.

"We need a number of people, but at least in this seat that's opening up, who understand the law, who understand how to draft policy, who doesn't have to rely so heavily on the advice of the city attorney and can push back on the recommendations made by the city attorney and other staff in other departments," Carbajal said.

Past that, Carbajal said the city needs to focus on the "paramount" task of lowering residents' extravagant property tax bills.

More: Commissioners, county judge increase taxes, include ‘tone deaf’ raises, speakers say

"We have to look at the real impact that property taxes have on people," she said, praising the City Council for instituting a no-new tax rate while chiding the El Paso County Commissioners Court for giving itself a raise and hiking taxes. "Because our assessment values have gone up ... we are already paying more property taxes, so to layer a higher rate on top of that is, I believe, unjustified and detrimental to local homeowners."

But perhaps most importantly, Carbajal hopes to focus on the things most important to El Pasoans: safe streets and neighborhoods.

"Because that's ultimately what people care about," she said. "Safety tends to be the number one issue ... so let's push those issues."

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Progressive champion Veronica Carbajal enters El Paso District 2 race