TAFT, Texas — A large crowd filled Taft City Hall Wednesday evening as the city’s newly elected mayor and council members officially took their oaths of office.
Elida Castillo was sworn in as mayor, becoming the first woman to hold the position in Taft’s history. Council members Mariah Moreno and Esmeralda “Mimi” Cruz were also sworn in following their victories in last week’s election.
Castillo said the moment felt both exciting and historic, adding that she feels a strong sense of responsibility to serve the community.
“It’s exciting,” Castillo said. “It’s also, I feel like I have a huge responsibility, not just because of it being so historic, but there’s a lot of community building, transparency, trust, things like that.”
Castillo said one of her top priorities is to strengthen communication between City Hall and residents.
“We need to have more community engagement,” she said. “Having a monthly meeting with the mayor, hearing from our members, and then that way we could put a strategic plan."
“It’s a new day,” Castillo continued. “We saw how a lot of people came together through the unfortunate situation of the hailstorm. That is really what Taft is about helping out one another when times get tough. There’s a lot of positive energy, a lot of hope, and a lot of people wanting to get involved.”
Moreno and Cruz said being sworn in was a moment they had both looked forward to after a long campaign.
“It’s been a journey,” Moreno said. “Just looking forward to working with our public works, with our city secretary, city manager, police department, and kind of just do what’s right for Taft moving forward.”
Cruz described the experience as both exciting and humbling.
“A little nervous, more excitement than anything,” she said. “We’re finally in our seats, we’re ready to serve the city of Taft and be the voice for the community and working well with everyone in-house at City Hall, public works and police department, just everyone, to do what is right and to move forward.”
Both council members said they want to focus on improving infrastructure, financial stability, and public spaces for residents.
“We do have two years,” Moreno said. “Things don’t happen overnight. We ask for everybody to be patient. We have a lot to review and go over and just build a better future, streets, the water, parks for the kids, there’s a lot to be done. We just want financial stability to be able to move forward. Without that, we can’t do anything else.”
They thanked residents for participating in the election and said they are eager to begin serving.
“We thank the citizens for coming out and voting,” Cruz said. “We thank them for their contribution, their support, their love, their voices were heard, and we just look forward to moving in the right direction together.”
“We’re excited,” Cruz added. “We’re ready to work for the city of Taft and for the people.”
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