Mayor Paulette Guajardo makes remarks at the dais after she and the entire City Council were sworn in to new two-year terms of office. The new council not only has a new mayor but two new at-large members and a new representative for District 1. Screen-captured image
Promising to usher in a “new era of progress,” Paulette Guajardo was sworn in as the new mayor of Corpus Christi on Tuesday, Jan. 12. Guajardo served two terms as a council member at-large before she unseated incumbent Mayor Joe McComb in the Nov. 3 election.
The council also welcomed three newcomers: Mike Pulsey, formerly a Nueces County commissioner, and John Martinez, an attorney, sworn in as at-large members; and Billy Lerma, a retired postal employee, as representative of District 1.
The other five members sworn in to new terms were all incumbents: Michale Hunter, a consultant, now in his second term as an at-large member; Ben Molina, president of Pinnacle Roofing Systems, beginning his third term representing District 2; Roland Barrera, an insurance benefits broker, in his second term as representative for District 3; and Gil Hernandez, a business consultant in the food service and cinema industries, in his second term serving District 5.
Guajardo is again the only female on the council and the fourth to serve as mayor of the city. She pledged as mayor to work for greater opportunities for women in Corpus Christi. She also promised to make Corpus Christi a city of momentum.
“Today marks a pivotal and historic moment in our city’s efforts to revitalize and rebuild our community,” Guajardo said. “We, the citizens of Corpus Christi, are united in a community belief that it is time to restore the promise of the future. As the principal spokesperson for the citizens of Corpus Christi, I am calling on all our residents to join me in working to build a greater city.”
