Pasco’s first Latino mayor stepping down after 10+ years
Pasco’s longest serving councilman is stepping down at the end of the year.
Saul Martinez, who is currently serving as mayor, told the Herald he’s not filing for re-election but will serve the rest of his term through December.
Before joining the council more than 10 years ago, Martinez served on the Pasco School Board.
“I have given more than 18 years of service to my community and for many reasons I have decided to step down and focus on the next journey for me and my family,” he said on Friday.
Martinez is an environmental compliance officer at Hanford and owns a small business in Pasco. He represents District 3 in the northeastern part of the city.
Before moving to the city in 2002, he was one of nine children who grew up as part of a close-knit family in Mesa, in north Franklin County. He graduated from Connell High School and attended Columbia Basin College.
He made history in 2020 by becoming the city’s first Latino mayor. The council picks its mayor from the city council members.
Martinez was the last council member to remain after the historic 2017 redistricting election.
The court-ordered redistricting ensured residents were able to pick a candidate who was more reflective of their neighborhoods, as well as the city at large.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Washington claimed four years ago that Pasco’s previous election system violated the federal Voting Rights Act, diluting the Latino vote and keeping Latinos from being elected to the city council.
Prior to the election, Martinez only knew of one other Latino council member in Pasco.
Pasco’s population is 55 percent Latino, according to the most recent numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau.
New candidates
Three people filed to replace Martinez — Tri-Cities Diversity and Inclusion Council leader Irving L. Brown, community activist Leo Perales and Nikki Torres, a past president of the Tri-Cities Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
Brown is the council’s executive director as well as a human resources professional at Red Lion. The council is a nonprofit aimed at embracing cultures and celebrating diversity through education and advocacy, according to it’s Facebook page.
Perales has been a leader in Consejo Latino, an organization that advocates for issues important to the Latino community. He previously tried to get on the Kennewick City Council and to run for the state senate.
“My candidacy is about helping us move past the pandemic and back to our lives,” he said in an announcement on Facebook. “I’m running because I feel that I can help. .... This is our city, and our city understand that its greatest strength is its people. Our lives in Pasco shouldn’t be dictated by partisan politics, but good public policies.”
Torres, is a business development professional who is working as a strategic partnerships manager for Western Governors University.
She said in her LinkedIn profile that she believes in giving back to the community. Along with serving on the Tri-Cities Hispanic Chamber, she has volunteered for Junior Achievement, and been on the board for Tri-Cities Community Health.
They were joined by Steven X. Martinez, a Pasco resident, in the race.
This story was originally published May 21, 2021 at 12:49 PM.