Tucson Mayor Regina Romero quashes rumors of potential Biden administration appointment
Tucson Mayor Regina Romero
TUCSON, Ariz. - Tucson Mayor Regina Romero has responded to rumors that she is being considered for a post in President Joe Biden's administration.
On March 12, a report by Tucson publication Tucson Sentinel states that Mayor Romero is being considered for a position in the Department of Housing and Urban Development, citing U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva. The report noted that rumors of a Federal post appointment for Romero has been circulating for months.
On March 19, Mayor Romero issued a statement, saying she has told Biden administration officials of her intent to remain as mayor of the Southern Arizona city.
"Although it would be an honor to even be considered for such an important post, my heart is here in Tucson, and I love the job Tucsonans elected me to serving as Mayor of our beautiful city," Mayor Romero wrote, in the statement.
In the same statement, Mayor Romero wrote that she is eagle to work in partnership with the Biden administration on issues important to Tucson residents.
"We have an amazing opportunity to make progress on issues of local and national importance with a presidential administration that understands the importance of climate action, infrastructure investment, and job creation," read a portion of the statement.
According to the Associated Press, Romero is the first Latina mayor in the city's history. She was also the subject of a recall effort in 2020, when a group of Tucson residents started to collect signatures to oust her from office. They claim Romero has "failed to fulfill her duties" as mayor.
The group has listed several complaints on its website, including Romero’s decision to remove police officers’ presence from election polling sites, her approval of a "Black Lives Matter" banner at city hall and her support for a citywide mask mandate.
According to a report by Tucson ABC station KGUN on March 1, the recall effort failed because organizers did not collect enough valid signatures.
This story was reported on from Phoenix. The Associated Press (AP) contributed to this report.
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