REPRESENTATIVE MELINA CASTRO

Melina Castro was raised in historic Central and Northeast El Paso and attended schools in the Ysleta Independent School District, graduating in 1995. She received her BA in Criminal Justice.

Her work background was in multiple disciplines, culminating in her appointments as Administrative Assistant for Justice of the Peace and Archives Supervisor for the District Clerk for the offices of the County of El Paso. As part of her job assignments, she supervised a staff of 4 to 8 employees, with specific emphasis on civil, truancy and criminal courts and on record retention and destruction.

In 2002, she made her first run for public office as an independent candidate in a partisan election for the office of County Tax Assessor Collector.

In 2005, she ran for a full term as the City Council Representative of District 4 of the City of El Paso. The District sits proximate to the Fort Bliss Military installation, in the shadows of the Franklin Mountains, near the New Mexico border. The constituency of the District is approximately 78,400 citizens, who, as a whole have strong ties to Fort Bliss.

Upon being elected, in June of 2005 for a four-year term, it was a watershed event, as Representative Castro became the first Hispanic female to represent District 4 in the history of the City of El Paso. She is a chair/board member of the Rio Grande Council of Governments, Young Elected Officials, CASA-Court Appointed Special Advocate, Fiscal Affairs/Audit Committee, Economic and Community Development Board, Environmental Services Board, Transportation Services Board, Health and Public Safety Board, Council Rules Board, Intergovernmental Relations Board, S.P.I.R.I.T. (Southwest Passage Initiative and Regional and Interstate Transportation), Mass Transit Board, Leadership El Paso and the Alternate Delegate for the Central Appraisal District Board.

Representative Castro is married, and engages in her elected office on a full time basis, with a legislative outlook that places her as an staunch advocate for her constituency, not merely a rubber stamp for the Municipal Administration. She is committed to greater governmental efficiencies, fiscally conservative policies, and a desire to preserve the natural beauty of the District, consistent with positive economic growth.

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