First candidate picks up packet for Sinajana Vice Mayor

Sinajana has its first potential candidate running for Vice Mayor.

The Guam Election Commission (GEC) set the special election for Mar. 9.

Village Mayor Robert Hoffman picked up a candidate packet last Friday for himself and for his potential Vice Mayor candidate Karl Sotto. 

Hoffman said, “We said who would be best in talking with the staff, talking with the family and Karl Sotto's name came up time and time again, he's a wonderful man, he lives in our community.”

Sotto is currently the Bureau of Women's Affairs Program Coordinator. 

Hoffman said Sotto is also the music director at the village church. So, when Hoffman asked if Sotta could run with him as vice mayor, sotto accepted the offer.

“I approached him, I said, would you do me the honors of, should the legislature not act fulfilling and completely the Vice Mayor Irirarte’s term, and he was very touched by it and without hesitation, he'd be honored to carry on that legacy and complete the projects that vice mayor rudy and i set out to do this term,” Hoffman said. 

Despite finding a potential candidate, Hoffman is still pushing to ultimately get rid of the position. 

Guam law currently requires the GEC to hold a special election now that it's vacant. 

The mayor appeared before the legislature recently supporting proposed legislation to abolish the vice mayor position contending the village’s population has changed throughout the years, adding the position is no longer necessary.

Hoffman said, “Prior after the war, Sinajana was a huge village. Sinajana encompassed all the way down to the Pago Bay area, MTM portions, and Agana Heights, it was a huge area, and the population was in several thousands at a time. But you know, over time, our borders got changed and things happen and our population shrunk in terms of where we are actually living now. So it kind of made sense. It just didn't make any sense anymore.”

The discussion and plans for a special election comes in the wake of the death of Vice Mayor, Rudy Iriarte. 

Hoffman said it was even Iriarte's wish to abolish the position.

He said, “I really want to honor his legacy here. He's always just telling me, you don't need me, you don't need me. And I'm like, what do you mean I don’t need you? Because you don't need a vice mayor? And he goes, why? Because you do everything on your own. I said it's not about my time or anything. But he understood the fiscal responsibility of it and he goes, you know what, after this, use the money for the village projects, use the money for all the other things that we're doing here to make this community thrive.”

Sotto agreed with ultimately doing away with the position. Sotto used this opportunity however to launch his political career.

Sotto said, "I do support the intent of the bill, which is of course to make the government (at least this portion of it) more efficient. It’s a vision I share with the late Vice-Mayor Rudy and with Mayor Robert. The abolishment of the position is one step toward that goal. However, I don’t want it to end there."

While the bill to abolish the vice mayor job did not make this month's session agenda, Mayor Hoffman hopes the legislature will get to it soon before more candidates pick up packets and decide to run.

Hoffman said, “It is a requirement. Because at the end, like hundreds of signatures, you got to kind of do a lot of this work. And we don't want we don't want this for people to do all that. and then get shut down either. So if the legislature can quickly act and move on this end here, seeing just the facts laid out as they are, we appreciate it.”

By late Tuesday, no other candidates picked up packets from the GEC.