This is your weekly update, which takes a quick look at the week ahead and some developments that El Paso Matters is following.
‘I Voted’ Sticker Winner: El Pasoans who vote next year will be rewarded with a sticker designed by Denisse I. Villalobos-Estrada, a junior at Fabens High School.
The contest was sponsored by the El Paso County Elections Department and was open to high school students in the county.
This sticker, designed by Denisse I. Villalobos-Estrada of Fabens High School, will be offered to El Paso County voters after they cast ballots in 2024 elections.
The stickers will be offered to voters who cast ballots, starting with the primary elections in March. The Elections Department has been using El Paso-themed stickers designed by El Paso students for several years, instead of more generic “I voted” stickers used in much of the country.
Pablo A. Alonso, a senior at Cathedral High School, won second place in this year’s contest.
Rebecca Lopez, a senior YISD-Young Women’s Leadership Academy won third place.
Judges were Anne Hussmann Mitchell, founder and owner of So El Paso; Claudia S. Preza, assistant curator for El Paso Museum of Art; and Tino Ortega, an El Paso artist and muralist.
The three winners will be honored by the El Paso County Commissioners Court on Dec. 4.
Escobar’s Role in George Santos’ Report: Sometime Thursday or Friday, the House Ethics Committee is expected to release findings of its investigation into controversial New York Rep. George Santos. The Republican freshman fabricated much of his biography during his 2022 campaign, and also faces criminal charges related to campaign finance and identity theft allegations. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso, is one of 10 members of the committee that will issue the report. The committee is evenly split between Democrats and Republicans and has jurisdiction over compliance with ethics rules by House members and employees.
Santos, who briefly visited El Paso in June, could face renewed efforts to oust him from Congress if the Ethics Committee issues a scathing finding. An effort to remove him earlier this month failed, largely because House members said they wanted to wait for the committee report, and perhaps the outcome of the criminal prosecution.
Fernando Garcia, director of Border Network for Human Rights, said that the true border crisis is “the crisis of death” during a vigil in Chihuahuita Park for the 148 migrants who died in the El Paso Sector this year. (Corrie Boudreaux/El Paso Matters)
BNHR’s 25th Anniversary: The Border Network for Human Rights will celebrate its 25th year anniversary with various events this weekend, including an awards ceremony on Saturday in Canutillo, Texas. BNHR was founded in 1998 to promote and protect human rights, regardless of a person’s immigration status. Some of the BNHR’s major accomplishments include the annual Hugs Not Walls event; the Municipal ID program adopted by the city and county; a Citizenship Fair in Presidio, Texas, and human rights promoter training where individuals are trained to look out for human rights violations.
The post The Week Ahead: See the sticker El Pasoans will get for voting in 2024 appeared first on El Paso Matters.
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