Zavaletta, Aguilar receive support of unions

Several candidates for county and state offices received a boost Saturday as the Brownsville Union Coalition announced its endorsements for the March primary.

Cameron County District Attorney candidate Peter Zavaletta and Cameron County Sheriff hopeful Juan Aguilar were among those for whom BUC declared support.

“I am deeply honored and appreciate this endorsement,” Zavaletta said. “I am grateful to the membership in each union and the leadership of BUC.”

Aguilar hopes residents will go out and vote during the March 4 primaries, he said.

“I feel honored because I respect the union,” he said. “This means a lot because we are trying to go for collective bargaining in our union, so we—the deputies—can better ourselves at work and at home, with better salaries and better equipment.”

BUC also announced its endorsement of state Rep. Rene Oliveira; Rolando Olvera, candidate for the 445th state District Court; Gilberto Rosas, candidate for the 444th state District Court; and Justice of the Peace Linda Salazar, BUC Chairman David Lopez said.

Five unions comprise BUC, including the Cameron County Sheriff’s Deputies Association, Brownsville Fire Fighters Association, the Association of Brownsville Educators, the International Longshoremen’s Association and the National Association of Letter Carriers, Brownsville branch.

BUC did not endorse Judge Abel Limas of the 404th state District Court, nor his opponent Elia Cornejo-Lopez.

They also did not endorse Precinct 1 County Commissioner Sofia Benavides, nor her opponent Lucino Rosenbaum.

“Now, if someone in their union wishes to support them through their own union, they can do that, they have the right to do that,” Lopez said. “One of the rules in BUC is that they have the right to do that through their union.”

Lopez and other board members felt good about their choices, he said.

“We are confident that they are going to do a good job,” he said. “We would like to make sure that not only our union brothers and sisters (go out and vote)—that everyone get out there and vote.”