Last-minute Donna election spurred by legal filings from mayor’s brother

DONNA — After officials here on Aug. 5 chose to not call for a municipal election for the Place 2 and 4 seats on the Donna City Council, it was legal action brought on by the mayor’s brother that ultimately forced the city’s hand during a specially called meeting on Monday.

Manuel “Manny” O. Moreno, brother of Donna Mayor David Moreno, filed the petition on Aug. 13 seeking a writ of mandamus from the 13th Court of Appeals that would order Donna to call the election, court records show.

David Moreno had been the sole member of the council to vote against canceling the election.

Just three days later — on Aug. 16 — the appeals court would go on to decide that Manny Moreno had sufficiently proved his case and thus directed the city to order the election.

Donna complied with the court’s opinion on Monday, when the city council unanimously voted to hold an election on the uniform election date, Nov. 5.

And now Manny Moreno will be one of several people’s names on the November ballot.

But the city council’s decision to order the election didn’t come without some controversy or fireworks.

First came a question over how binding the court’s opinion was and what, exactly, a court “opinion” means.

“I believe it was an opinion. I believe we have (outside) counsel here,” Place 4 Councilman Oscar Gonzales said, referring to attorney Moises Flores, whom Donna had hired to represent the city in the mandamus hearing.

Gonzales is one of two councilmen whose seats are at stake in the upcoming election.

Both he and Place 2 Councilman Joey Garza Jr. have contended that their terms should span four years after Donna voters approved of a charter amendment that extended term lengths during a November 2021 election.

In that same election, voters also selected Gonzales and Garza to represent them at Places 4 and 2, respectively.

But, as Donna City Attorney Robert Salinas explained to them, that term extension didn’t apply to them because the ballot language didn’t specify that it would.

Instead, Salinas said, state law generally construes such legislative changes to be “prospective,” or applicable to future situations.

And since both Gonzales and Garza had been elected at the same time that voters approved Proposition A, their term lengths were still subject to the status quo that existed before the charter amendment was passed.

The city attorney further stated that he had given the same answer to former Donna Mayor Rick Morales ahead of the November 2023 election when he had similarly asked if his term — which began in November 2020 — was set to end in 2023, or if it could be extended to 2024.

Unsatisfied with Salinas’ answer — or a similar opinion from the attorneys at the Texas Municipal League — the city council moved to get another legal opinion from an outside attorney.

Initially, they hoped to engage Brownsville attorney and noted elections expert Gilberto Hinojosa for the task, but ultimately went with Flores at a rate of about $300 per hour, the mayor said on Monday.

Once his brother initiated the legal dispute, Flores’ rate jumped to $500 per hour for the time he spent in front of the appellate judges, David Moreno said.

Back at city hall on Monday, Salinas, Donna’s contracted city attorney, explained that a court opinion is not a suggestion, but a directive that must be followed lest the court hand down consequences.

“Failure to follow an order of a court of judicial competence is gonna be castigated by either a fine or jail,” Salinas said. “I don’t recommend to this commission that they disobey or not follow the mandates of the 13th Court of Appeals.”

But then the question arose of how to abide by the court’s opinion when deadlines for both ordering an election and filing to run as a candidate in that election occurred on the same day — in this case, on Monday.

“The issue is can we extend the filing deadline for other applicants that may want to run?” Place 3 Councilman Ernesto Lugo asked.

Flores, the third-party attorney, said that the mandamus simply required Donna to call for an election in accordance with its city charter, which ostensibly meant that potential candidates would have another 30 days to submit an application.

“Did the opinion indicate what date the election should be held? Does it have to be Nov. 5?” Lugo asked a moment later.

“It does not state that, commissioner,” Flores replied.

But Salinas disputed Flores’ interpretation of the court order.

“Yes, sir, it does say that — three or four times,” Salinas said about the court’s intention for Donna to hold an election on Nov. 5, specifically.

“Again, counsel, with all due respect, you’re mistaken as to the facts, and you’re mistaken as to the law,” Salinas said.

Just as the two attorneys began a verbal sparring match, the mayor called for order and for a vote. This time, all five members of the council voted to order the election.

Speaking after the meeting adjourned, Salinas said the rift may have caused some political hopefuls to miss their chance to run for office this year.

“Because of the delay that was caused, I’m afraid that they are too late to file,” Salinas said.

But some candidates were able to file an application ahead of Monday’s statutory deadline. Two men have filed to challenge the incumbents.

Manny Moreno, the man who brought the legal challenge that forced the city’s hand, will challenge Oscar Gonzales for Place 4, the mayor confirmed.

David Moreno praised his brother for challenging the council’s previous decision in court.

“I think that he stepped up. He stepped up and is representing this community,” David Moreno said.

“The decision by the commissioners to not call the election, to me, has always been the wrong decision,” the mayor added.

And at Place 2, Joey Garza will face challenger Arturo “Art” Mendoza.

“I’m a newcomer to this. Trying to get my feet wet, see what I can do for the city of Donna,” Mendoza said when reached by phone on Tuesday.

Mendoza submitted his candidate application on Monday morning, he said.

Neither Mendoza nor Manny Moreno are entirely new to politics, however.

Mendoza has run once before, but lost in a three-way race for Place 1 in November 2023. That seat was ultimately won by Jesse “Coach” Jackson.

Both Mendoza and Manny Moreno also serve on Donna’s economic arms.

In January, the council appointed Mendoza to the Donna Economic Development Corporation (4A) board of directors. The council also approved the mayor’s suggestion to appoint his brother, Manny, to the Development Corporation (4B) board of directors.

Neither Gonzales, Garza nor Manny Moreno returned messages seeking comment for this story.

As for the mayor, he said he’s glad that Donna voters will now have a chance to decide on their representation.

“I think that the 13th Court of Appeals’ decision puts it in the hands of the voters, where it should be, and not with the commission,” David Moreno said.