Calexico’s first transgender mayor – who flamboyantly wears dresses and makeup – is facing recall after voters complained they thought they were voting a man into office.
Mayor Raul Ureña, 26, was recently heckled by a protestor at a pride flag-raising ceremony in Jube.
The protestor, Rebecca Lemon, had to be ripped away by three police officers as she lunged at the city’s mayor and spewed profanity. Lemon screamed: ‘He’s not a woman! He’s not a woman!’ Then she shockingly kicked the mayor’s dad.
Ureña was elected into office in 2020 at the age of 23 and came out as gender-fluid and transgender in 2022 – after her re-election.
Lemon is now leading a recall effort to remove Ureña from office, with a vote set for next week on the mayor’s fate.
Calexico’s first transgender mayor is facing recall after voters complained they thought they were voting a man into office
Mayor Raul Ureña, 26, was elected into office in 2020 at the age of 23 and came out as gender-fluid and transgender in 2022 – after her re-election
In June, she was heckled by protestors at a pride flag-raising ceremony in Jube where an avid Ureña hater screamed ‘he’s not a woman!’
Ureña eventually started wearing dresses and makeup in official appearances, which riled up voters who felt duped because they believed they were voting for a gay cisgender man and not a transgender woman.
Ureña was slammed with recall papers the next spring – but Ureña was nevertheless elected to become Calexico’s mayor in November 2022.
Lemon has long been the face of a campaign fighting to remove Ureña from office, and she had personally served her the recall papers.
The transgender public official ripped the papers in half.
Despite the other members of the recall campaign distancing themselves from Lemon after her outburst, they have marched on with their efforts to oust Ureña from public office.
They successfully forced a recall election for Ureña and a fellow progressive council member, Gilberto Manzanarez.
Both of the young and liberal public officials are set to face a vote on April 16 to determine their political fate.
Protestors successfully forced a recall election for Ureña and a fellow progressive council member, Gilberto Manzanarez
‘This man is the mayor of Calexico, his name is Raul Ureña and we are watching him in protest with Black Lives Matter. Those people don’t even belong here in this city. Here, a city of Mexican people, we are doing a recall. Go and look for him here on Tiktok so you can see that we don’t occupy a person like that that represents us,’ the caption reads in Spanish
Calexico is a city in southern Imperial County that sits on the border of Mexico and California.
The city’s population of about 38,000 is largely made up of mostly Democrat voters – but from the 2016 to the 2020 election, Republican voters increased from under 10 percent to almost 27 percent.
Those pushing for the removal of Ureña from office have stated that ‘During this recall, we want to remind all to be respectful towards personal sexual preferences as this is not the platform.’
However, the actions of their former campaign leader suggest otherwise.
After Lemon’s attack, former mayor Maritz Hurtado became the new public face for the campaign.
Residents of Calexico took to social media when Ureña became mayor to bash the politician for his appearance.
When images surfaced of Ureña wearing a dress – people said ‘how gross’ and ‘this must be a joke.’
Ureña opened up about his struggles as a member of the LGBTW+ community – and admitted his parents told him to hide is sexual orientation when he came out at the age of 17
Ureña opts for dresses that reveal her hairy chest, bold makeup, bright colors, jewelry and high heels – making her stand out for better or for worse
Ureña was slammed with recall papers in Spring 2022 – but Ureña was nevertheless elected to become Calexico’s mayor in November 2022
Calexico resident Diana Silva said she felt uncomfortable with the image Ureña is portraying but she is also not happy with his work in the city council, according to Beyond Border News.
Ureña opened up about his struggles as a member of the LGBTW+ community – and admitted his parents told him to hide is sexual orientation when he came out at the age of 17.
‘My parents wanted me to keep it to myself because they were worried about my safety,’ he said. ‘My dad was not very happy with me being public about my sexual orientation so I decided to leave and go to school.’