Cascos set to leave post

After serving nearly two years as Texas’ Secretary of State, Carlos H. Cascos’ last day on the job will be Jan. 4, 2017.

Gov. Greg Abbott announced yesterday that he has appointed Rolando Pablos to serve as Texas’ next Secretary of State beginning Jan. 5.

Cascos was nominated as secretary of state Nov. 11, 2014. He was sworn in as the 100th secretary of state on March 7, 2015.

The former Cameron County judge and Brownsville resident said yesterday he has not decided what his next move will be, but he said he would remain active in public service and civic engagement.

“I am going to continue to be active in civic engagement and public service. I am not going to go off and hibernate. I am going to continue being active in local endeavors, so I am not going to disappear,” Cascos said.

Abbott nominated Cascos in November 2014 — shortly after Abbott was elected governor- because he wanted to improve the state’s relationship with Mexico and believed that Cascos’ ties with the border region would be key in growing the state’s connection with Mexico, Abbott said at the time.

Cascos said he accomplished several things while serving as secretary of state, including strengthening ties with Mexico, getting Mexico to become current on its water debt to the United States treaty and running a statewide election.

“The election was pretty hiccup free; it went well. Besides from literally the 100 plus speeches I gave and I don’t know how many cities we visited during the two years, it was a good way for me to meet Texans all over the state. It was a good experience, and I thank the governor for giving me that opportunity,” Cascos said.

Cascos never gave much thought to how long he would serve as secretary of state. He said it is a challenging job and that though it did not require travel, he chose to do so to improve relations between Mexico, Canada and Texas.

“I still think Mexico is an integral part of Texas’ life and Texas’ economy. I did what I hoped to accomplish. The timing may be right for me (to leave), and the timing may be right for everyone at this point,” Cascos said.

In a press release, Abbott thanked Cascos, saying, “I would also like to extend my sincere appreciation to Secretary Cascos for his service and dedication to the people of Texas, and for strengthening our partnerships across the globe.”

According to the press release, Pablos is co-founder and CEO of Uriel Americas. Most recently, he served as CEO of the Borderplex Alliance, a bi-national economic development organization based on the US-Mexico border.

The release states Pablos is “an economic development expert who understands the importance of leveraging strategic community capacity building for purposes of attracting investment to Texas. As a state official and in his private practice, he has played critical roles in the advancement of international trade with Texas, especially through his advocacy for cross-border collaboration between the US and Mexico.”

Pablos has also served as Honorary Consul to Spain, where he worked to ensure the formation and development of business and diplomatic relationships between Texas and Spain. He recently served as commissioner on two state regulatory agencies: the Public Utility Commission of Texas and the Texas Racing Commission.