BY BRADEN CARTWRIGHT
Daily Post Staff Writer
East Palo Alto Councilwoman Martha Barragan announced today (July 30) that she won’t be seeking re-election because of health issues.
Barragan, 48, has often been aligned with Mayor Webster Lincoln and Councilman Mark Dinan on issues such maintaining the city’s license plate-reading cameras, even after ICE allegedly accessed the company’s data.
Barragan was elected in 2022 and served as last year’s mayor. She teaches at Encinal Elementary School in Atherton.
Barragan said she will continue to be involved in the community and thanked residents and her colleagues in her announcement.
“Serving our community as a council member over the past four years has been one of the greatest honors of my life,” she said.
Two seats are up for grabs in November. Vice Mayor Ruben Abrica, 77, who served on the city’s inaugural council in 1983, told the Post that he is seeking another term. No candidates have qualified for the ballot yet, according to the city’s website.
Thank you for your service, Martha Barragan. East Palo Alto has improved public safety under your leadership. There is no evidence that Flock Safety and ALPRs have been used for immigration enforcement here, if anything, they’ve helped solve several crimes that would otherwise have gone unsolved. Under your leadership, we’ve gone two full years without a single homicide (2023 and 2025), with none so far this year. That record reflects our community’s commitment to public safety, a commitment that stands in contrast to Ruben Abrica and Carlos Romero, who have advocated for policies that make our neighborhoods less safe. Earlier this year, Councilmember Carlos Romero submitted a character reference, on letterhead bearing the city seal, supporting a motion for the pretrial release of Rafael Prado, a former city employee who has since pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a 14-year-old boy and possessing child sexual abuse material. When Romero came under fire for it, Ruben Abrica publicly defended him.
That tribute went off the rails
She’s been an abysmal council member and mayor.