Peñitas Mayor Ramiro Loya and council members Jose Roel “JR” Flores and Guadalupe Moreno have announced their reelection bids.
The mayor and two council members officially filed for reelection on Feb. 6, according to a news release.
“It has been my absolute honor to lead our growing city of Peñitas and our community as Mayor over the past few months,” Loya said in the release. “I am proud of all that we have accomplished in such a short period during my tenure as Mayor and I look forward to working to continue to “Keep Peñitas Growing” in the future.”
Loya was appointed as mayor on Aug. 26, 2022, following the resignation of embattled former Mayor Rodrigo Lopez. Loya had previously served on the city council since 2015, and he’d previously served in that same capacity from 1996 to 1997 before stepping away due to health reasons.
“We have worked diligently to attract business and commerce that has helped Peñitas’ economy grow exponentially, and we have many exciting and big projects in the works with big retailers, franchises, and new businesses,” he said in the release. “Our plan is to continue to build on this economic development boom.
“We have the right team of visionary leaders and I know that JR and Guadalupe are as dedicated to improving our community and quality of life for our residents as I am.”
Loya’s announcement was made alongside Flores and Moreno, who was appointed to the council on Sep. 22, 2022.
“This is a very exciting time in our history, and I am ready to continue to blaze the trail as we continue to build our infrastructure, improve our roadways, invest in our community, and work together to attract new developers to our community,” Loya said in the release. “Quality of life is very important to us, and we want to bring our residents the best services, job opportunities, dining and retail experiences, and provide our children with fun outdoor recreation opportunities.”
Flores, the current mayor pro-tem, has served on the Peñitas City Council for several terms and is currently employed with La Joya school district.
“As your city councilman, I have been dedicated to improving our city services and investing in infrastructure to keep our citizens safe and our community growing,” Flores said in the release. “I am most proud of our efforts to enhance city roadways, our partnership with Hidalgo County to mitigate flooding through drainage infrastructure improvements, and our most recent project, working with AEP to upgrade and expand street lighting throughout the city.”
Moreno has lived in Peñitas for over 15 years. He is currently employed with La Joya ISD as a teacher and a coach.
“The last few months serving on the council have been incredible and I am proud to join this outstanding group of public servants who are devoted to making our City of Peñitas a better place for all our citizens and surrounding communities,” Moreno said in the news release. “We have worked together to continue to attract new businesses, create new community-oriented events such as Market Days, and we work hard everyday to continue to grow the City of Peñitas for future generations.
“As my colleagues have already stated, we have many big things planned for 2023 and the future and I hope to continue to serve our citizens and community to make sure our plans for the future come to fruition.”
Early voting in the May election is set to begin on Monday, April 24, and runs through Tuesday, May 2. Election Day is scheduled for Saturday, May 6.
