District 5 Run-Off Election: A Closer Look At The Candidates

The election results are in, but some candidates aren’t quite done campaigning. The City of El Paso is holding a run-off election next month and two district representative seats are at stake.

ABC-7 is taking a closer look at the run-off race for District 5, which covers East El Paso. Candidates are hoping to fill Rachel Quintana’s seat, who has decided not to run for re-election.

Saturday’s results put Mike Noe in the lead with 41 percent of the votes. Mayela Mejia came in with nearly 32 percent of the votes. Voters will decide who takes the seat in June, either on the 11th or the 18th of that month.

Mejia told ABC-7 one of her strengths is her experience. She has worked in City Hall for about four years. “I’ve worked with several department heads at the city so my first day at work I’d just be rolling up my sleeves and getting to work. I won’t need to be trained on the job,” said Mejia.

Noe is a physician who owns his own private practice. He said City Hall would benefit from his expertise, “by bringing a little bit of business sense into the city and trying to provide a better service in the way it’s ran, trying to provide a better service at a lower cost.”

Both candidates support downtown revitilization plans and low taxes. We asked each one about specific goals they would bring into City Council if elected.

Mejia said she wants to improve accessibility by adding a satellite office on the East side and trim spending by making salary cuts to the city manager’s office and other top city administrators.

Noe said he wants to implement a more cost-effective waste disposal plan by overturning the so-called “flow control” ordinance. He said he’d also like to increase the city’s police force by gicing the police department more funds for more officers.

Stay with ABC-7 for details on the run-off race.