Mayor Rachel Ruelas on ARPA funding, strong leadership, and reviving the city of Mabton.

Interview by Laura Furr Mericas

You were born in Texas, but raised in Mabton, Washington—a small town with barely 2,000 residents. What prompted you to run for mayor?

I love this town. My kids all went to school here and graduated here. I wanted a change. Growing up in Mabton, I knew what my community looked like—and these days it felt really run down. My focus was to get it up and going and on track, and to restore pride in the community.

In the 2021 election, you ran as a write-in candidate and won by more than double the uncontested candidate’s votes. Why do you think people voted for you?
I went door to door, swallowing my pride even when people weren’t fond of me, and had a conversation about why I was running. I said that if they wanted Mabton to change for the better, this was the time. It was me asking them what they wanted, not me telling them what I could do. I did seven straight weeks on foot, seven days a week.

What did you do before you became mayor?
Until three years ago, I worked as a seasonal farm laborer with my husband at a ranch. In 1998 I also started a boutique with $1,500. We focused on bridal clothing, shoes, and accessories.

Now I also plan events, weddings, baby showers, and even funerals. I remember just crying and crying in the beginning because there’d be three straight months that we wouldn’t sell anything. But before we knew it, we had two stores and four full-time employees.

“Growing up in Mabton, I knew what my community looked like—and these days it felt really run down. My focus was to get it up and going and on track, and to restore pride in the community.”

Has that experience helped you in your role as mayor?
Yes. I’m a people person. I don’t shy away from it, and I’m not intimidated by anybody. I also had to learn how to hold myself and [maintain] my composure.

How is Mabton different now than when you were a kid?
When I was growing up you could walk the street here without having to worry if you were wearing red or blue and getting shot, having to walk by a trap house, seeing homeless and drug dealers and crossfire. Our little town needs a lot of work.

Starting with?
There has been a lot of turnover in public office, with staff, and with police officers. The community has been told one thing, and then the city sometimes goes and does the complete opposite. My administration started enforcing some ordinances that hadn’t been previously, and some residents said, “this was never followed before.” But I want them to know this is not my rule, it’s an ordinance. I want them to know that there are goals for Mabton, and rules need to be followed.

Which ordinances are now being enforced that weren’t before?
We’ve boarded up trap houses and houses where there were squatters living in them. We’ve put up no-trespassing signs. We’re pulling RVs out of properties where they should not be. We’re getting junk cars removed from yards. And we’ve placed several homeless people in rehabilitation or programs that are helping them get back into the workforce.

What was one of the first things you vowed to do as mayor?
My goal was to bring on a new chief of police for the City of Mabton within my first 90 days. It was maybe 98 days, but I accomplished it. I brought on Chief Eduardo Garcia, who has almost 25 years of experience.

What was his mandate?
I told him he is going to have to cater to the Hispanic community—98% of the population is Hispanic—and have them gain trust in him. We have a lot of hardworking farm laborers here whose kids are left at home when they are at work. and [families] don’t know what they are doing while they’re away. Garcia is from a migrant family, so he understands. I want him to get to know the people and the culture. It was like the wild Wild West out here: everyone just doing their own thing. I want him to help get people back on track and let them know, not in a rude way, how things are done—while also letting them know we care.

And your mandate as mayor?
When I was campaigning, people told me, “We need more police officers.” They wanted protection and coverage. Mabton used to have a bigger police force. Unfortunately, it dwindled down to one officer. Chief Garcia is bringing on more officers, including code enforcement—that’s our priority right now.

What’s your next top priority?
When I first became the mayor, we were in another building and the doors were closed due to COVID. There was no traffic coming in, and that upset me. The former mayor got funding to open a window so people could stand outside to pay their bills. But at that time, other businesses were open, other cities had already opened their city halls. On my first day, there was snowfall. There wasn’t even an awning to protect people. [In my first week], I opened the doors back up.

You also relocated city hall. Why? And where?
Our building was over 100 years old and very small. It was not wheelchair accessible and our staff was spread out throughout the building. It was like a maze. We moved down the street to a former bank. It has large windows and is more updated. We sit in cubicles and it’s good for the employees and more than anything for my community. Our community and our residents deserve something nice to come to. Even before I was mayor, in the city council meetings people would ask, “where is our tax money going?” Now they know.

Mabton received $634,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funding. What’s the city’s plan for allocating that?
We have some new housing developments being planned, and in order for those developments to come in, we need to add new water lines. Once we get new water lines put in for the new housing, we will then start replacing the old copper water lines. Some people’s water in parts of town comes out a rusty, orange color. Mine does. The lines will also allow us to get a new sprinkler system put in at Govenor’s Park. It used to be a beautiful park, where all of our events took place. We used to have carnivals on one side and car shows on the other. Now it’s an eyesore—all dirt and weeds. People are saying, “we need to get something done.” They’re ready for our community to look nice.

What else does Mabton need?
We need businesses. We just got a brand-new Dollar General in April, which has been great for the community, but my goal is to bring in new businesses. I’m hopeful that the new housing development will attract new residents and bring businesses to town. People say there is nothing in Mabton and I get it. But Mabton is what you make of it. We have a lot of good people and I want to see good things happening here.