By ARABELLA SERRATA
editor@sbnewspaper.com
PORT ISABEL, TX—At a meeting on Feb. 24, the Port Isabel-San Benito Navigation District Commissioners decided to hold the entity’s May 2025 elections in-house at their main location at 250 Industrial Dr., Port Isabel.
The election is scheduled for May 3, 2025. Places one and two are up for election. The current commissioners for the district include Chairman Victor Barrera, Pl. 1, Secretary Joe Martinez, Pl. 2, and Member Jose Morales, Pl. 3.
Morales’ term ends in 2027. He was present at the meeting and recalled a veteran attendee’s take on the poll’s location, alleging that it disenfranchises San Benito voters.
“I had a veteran stand up… and he said it the best. ‘I crossed the sea willing to give my life for this country’s freedom, and its freedom to vote and govern itself, and yet, you’re oppressing it by putting it here, [in Port Isabel]’” recited Morales.
Morales added that the drive to Port Isabel from San Benito is 40 miles.
“The seats do not belong to us. They belong to the community – those who elected you to be in. So how can you strip them from saying who’s going to sit in that seat? That’s exactly what they’re doing; they’re oppressing those votes,” said Morales.
According to Morales, the board listed costs as the reason for holding the election at a singular location in Port Isabel, rather than the multiple locations navigation district elections have seen in the past. Morales said that the year he was elected cost $80,000, while this year’s election is $40,000. He added that the situation, “didn’t make sense” to him, as the Port Isabel locations did not receive the higher voter turnout.
According to an official Cameron County results chart, the May 6, 2023 election had 1,934 voters turn out to the San Benito community building, and the Los Indios Community Center saw 136 voters. The Laguna Vista City Hall saw 154 voters, the Port Isabel City Hall saw 225 voters, and the South Padre Island Community Center saw 39 voters.
“Please come out and vote, exercise your right as a U.S. citizen. That is our greatest right, the right to govern ourselves and elect those officials who want to represent us and lead us forward… I’m sorry for what has happened, I thought our conversation would sway the other two commissioners, but I’m not giving up. Just bear with me, because I know it’s a long haul,” said Morales.
The NEWS attempted to contact the Navigation district directly for more information but did not receive a response by the time of publication. For more details on the district, visit the official website at portofportisabel.com.
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