Sam Hernandez announces second bid for Pueblo City Council, this time an at-large seat
Sam Hernandez wondered if he'd ever run for office again after finishing fourth in a tight 2023 race for Pueblo City Council District 2, but the former food truck owner keeps getting pulled back onto the campaign trail.
In addition to formerly operating Sam's Street Tacos, Hernandez has vice-chaired the Pueblo County Young Republicans, served as a Pueblo GOP Bonus Member, and has spoken publicly in favor of the Pueblo D60 Board of Education requiring parental notification for students' non-legal name changes.
Hernandez is also slated to be appointed to the Pueblo Planning & Zoning Commission if approved by city council on June 23.
This November, Hernandez will be on the ballot competing for one of two Pueblo City Council at-large seats. He is one of three Republicans who have filed paperwork with the Pueblo City Clerk's Office to run at-large. The other Republicans are former Pueblo County Commissioner candidate Steven Rodriguez and current Pueblo City Councilor Brett Boston.
"Growing up in Pueblo, you realize we don't take losses — we take lessons," Hernandez told the Chieftain. "This campaign is going to be different."
Hernandez's slogan for his 2025 council campaign is "A Stronger Pueblo Starts Local."
"You see a lot of out-of-town companies winning bids to do Pueblo jobs when we have a lot of Pueblo companies that could do the same job better... I'm just irritated as a Pueblo native seeing a lot of our jobs going to different cities," he said.
If elected to Pueblo City Council, Hernandez also looks to revitalize Downtown Pueblo into a weekend destination for individuals across the state. He told the Chieftain he is concerned about the current presence of unhoused individuals and crimes like vandalism to local businesses in the area.
"Our homeless situation needs to be addressed," he said. "The mayor has done a good job doing the sweeps. A lot of people don't agree with it, but just letting them make camps and do a free-for-all Armageddon was not the answer either. We need to protect our local businesses when it comes to crime and vandalism, and we need to hit it head-on."
When it comes to issues related to the city budget, Hernandez said Pueblo Mayor Heather Graham is "doing the best she can" in addressing a shortfall. He agrees that the city needs more sales tax revenue, but does not believe the burden should be on taxpayers.
"If we get more business-friendly, then we get better businesses in here," he said. "We get the people from Denver and (Colorado Springs) to say, 'Hey, let's go to Pueblo for the weekend.' Hotels are going to be filled, restaurants are going to be filled, entertainment is going to be filled. What does that bring to Pueblo? Sales tax."
Outside the two at-large seats — one currently occupied by Boston and another currently occupied by Dennis Flores — up for election, Regina Maestri's District 1 seat and Sarah Martinez's District 3 seat will also be up for grabs this November.
Dianne Danti and Elvis Martinez are the two candidates who have filed paperwork to run in District 1. Joseph Perko has filed to run in District 3, according to Pueblo Director of Public Affairs Haley Sue Robinson.
Pueblo shelter: Pueblo awards SafeSide Recovery long-term contract for homeless shelter operation
Pueblo Chieftain reporter James Bartolo can be reached at JBartolo@gannett.com. Support local news, subscribe to The Pueblo Chieftain at subscribe.chieftain.com.
This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: What to know about Pueblo City Council candidate Sam Hernandez
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