The Española city council united Monday night and in an 8-0 vote, approved Mayor Alice Lucero’s appointment of John Hernandez to replace councilor Cecilia Lujan, who resigned in November. Lujan was present at the meeting and voted.
Lujan was allowed to act as a city councilor based on an opinion from city attorney Frank Coppler.
Coppler states in correspondence to Lucero that Lujan is still a city councilor, based on Article XX, Sec. 2 of the state’s constitution, which states “Every officer, unless removed, shall hold his office until his successor is duly qualified.”
Case law supporting Coppler’s argument is based on a probate judge resigning in 1953, who could still function as the judge.
Coppler states in his letter, “The Attorney General has opined that this provision applies to members of a school board.”
None of the councilors who routinely oppose the mayor chose to challenge Coppler’s opinion.
City Councilor Robert Seeds said after the meeting, “Trying to fill the empty seat has been too much of a distraction. We have more important things to do. It is what it is.”
Following about one minute of discussion, Hernandez’s appointment was ratified unanimously and Lujan left, giving Hernandez her seat to the left of the mayor.
Hernandez lives on Camino Santa Cruz with his wife Barbara and is a retired Los Alamos National Laboratory employee, having spent much of his career in procurement and as a subcontract specialist, according to his resume. He holds a bachelor’s degree in finance from New Mexico State University.
The couple have two daughters, both of whom graduated from University of New Mexico.
Hernandez said Tuesday he did not apply for the councilor seat.
“Initially I was asked by Cecilia,” Hernandez said. “I know her. We go to the same church, Holy Cross. I know her family.”
The mayor approached him next, he said.
“I did not have any plans of my own,” he said.
He accepted the mayor’s request because he wants to contribute to the city in a positive way, he said.
“I read the paper and know about things going on in the city,” he said.
Hernandez has no political aspirations, he said. His short-term goal is to complete Lujan’s term.
“To be blunt, I want to stay out of politics,” he said. “I’m not a politician. My goal is to do what’s right for the city, make sure we spend taxpayer money in the right way.”
He was caught off-guard by the unanimous approval and said he wasn’t prepared to take the seat at Monday night’s meeting.
“I thought the council would query me and vote and if I was approved, I would join them at their next meeting,” he said. “I didn’t even get to read the council packet.”
Hernandez said he assumed he would take Lujan’s committee seats also, which are finance and public works.
He said he’ll dig into some reading, speak with other councilors and welcomes his constituents’ thoughts, ideas and requests.