Kimberly Mata-Rubio, the mother of , one of the victims of the , is running to be the mayor of the Texas city, she announced Thursday.
Mata-Rubio is looking to succeed Mayor , who is stepping down after nearly 10 years leading the city, about 80 miles west of San Antonio, to pursue a state House seat, . A special election for the remainder of McLaughlin鈥檚 term will take place November 7, the city announced Wednesday.
McLaughlin, who was most recently reelected to a four-year term in 2020, will remain in office until a successor is elected, Sorayda Sanchez, the Uvalde city secretary, told CNN in an email.
鈥淭his is only the beginning,鈥� Mata-Rubio , while sharing a photo of a Uvalde Leader-News story about her campaign. She currently serves as an advertising executive for the newspaper, .
Mata-Rubio addressed her daughter in her post on Twitter, now rebranded to 鈥淴.鈥�
鈥淚 grieve for the woman you would have become and all the difference you would have made in this world,鈥� she said, adding, 鈥淚 will honour your life with action.鈥�
Lexi was among 19 fourth graders and two teachers who were fatally shot inside Robb Elementary School in May 2022. Since the mass shooting, officials have given about the police response to the incident and many questions remain over why it took more than an hour from the gunman entering the school to him being killed by law enforcement. Mata-Rubio has demanded answers from officials and has been , including calling for a ban on assault rifles.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 want you to think of Lexi as just a number,鈥� she on gun violence in June 2022. 鈥淪he was intelligent, compassionate and athletic. She was quiet, shy 鈥� unless she had a point to make. When she knew she was right, as she so often was, she stood her ground. She was firm, direct, voice unwavering.鈥�
Mata-Rubio shared her experience with grief and mother鈥檚 guilt earlier this year to mark the one-year anniversary of the shooting.
鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 get better. It鈥檚 just been longer since we鈥檝e seen her,鈥� Mata-Rubio said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think we want to move forward. I think when people ask me about that, you鈥檙e asking me to move further from my last memory with her. That鈥檚 uncomfortable, and I don鈥檛 want to do that.鈥�
Candidates have until September 6 to file for the Uvalde mayoral special election, according to the statement released by the city. Sanchez, the Uvalde city secretary, told CNN the city hadn鈥檛 received any applications as of Thursday afternoon. Former Uvalde Mayor Cody Smith is looking to once again lead the city, .
