Being an Incumbent Isn't Wnat it Used to Be

By Diego Garcia III | Editor of The Brownsville Beacon

Riding to an election victory on the coattails of your incumbency isn't what it used to be.

Gone are the days of the incumbent being able to sit back and run a relatively plain campaign through primary season through to the general election. This phenomenon is happening in greater numbers at the local level with it bleeding over into the state and national level. State Senator Eddie Lucio's campaign was nearly sunk after narrowly beating out a political newcomer in a runoff election after the Democratic primary. Let that sink in for just a few minutes. A career politician who has been in Cameron County and state politics for over three decades was nearly defeated by a political newcomer running an upstart, grassroots campaign. Donald Trump joins a small number of men who have failed to win reelection to the presidency, Following in the footsteps of other one-term presidents like George H.W. Bush and Jimmy Carter.

Being an incumbent used to almost always guarantee your reelection. It was almost an instinctual reflex when Brownsvillians went to the polls every election season. If you saw names like Lucio, De La Garza, Vela, Gonzalez, Hernandez, or Perez on the ballot, your brain didn't even react. Your hand automatically pulled on that lever or darkened in that circle. These incumbents hardly had to campaign. With a few signs strategically placed along high traffic areas in town, you were quickly reminded, "oh, what's-his-name, the same guy we always vote for, is still on the ballot."

However, a funny thing happened during the last few election cycles. Constituents actually began demanding their elected officials start actually delivering on their campaign promises to do good and serve the community. As strange as it may seem, the citizenry grew tired of do-nothing politicians who did nothing but line their own campaign war chests with money from special interests and big money donors.

The demystification of politics and the era of citizen journalism has started to make people demand more from their elected officials. More and more people are getting their news from blogs, and unconventional "new school" media outlets. This has made people more informed and more up-to-date with the inner workings of their different government institutions. We do not consider The Beacon one of the preeminent blogs of Brownsville, but some of the city's better bloggers have broken several stories and written more in-depth stories about local and state politics.

It is because of all the new local coverage, along with all of the newer, non-traditional media sources, that local incumbents lost their races a handful of days ago. Nowhere was this more prevalent than with the local school board. With the exception of one place, all of the incumbents seeking reelection were defeated. One was blown out by more than 5,000 votes, while one was defeated by one, yes one, vote. The one incumbent who did win reelection was running against someone accused of stealing thousands of dollars from his organization's union. Two other incumbents didn't even seek reelection. Two other races had former board members who were trying to reclaim seats on the board. They were also defeated handily.

Let these results ring out loud and clear. Moving forward, ignore the constituents, and ignore them at your peril. If you do not deliver on your promise to serve the people, the people will rise up and deny you another seat at the table. It is clear the citizenry's patience has worn thin, and they expect results.

Yes, I understand it's a crazy, radical concept, but it is clear the people are no longer willing to sit idly by and let the wool be pulled over their eyes. Let's just hope all those who replaced the incumbents realize the time to change things up and the time to lead starts now.

Brownsville can ill afford to take two steps backward for every step forward.