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As Nueces County Attorney's Chief of Litigation, successfully defended the County in many lawsuits, saving the taxpayers millions of dollars.  That is why the present County Attorney, Laura Jimenez, has endorsed him. Rene is the only canditidate that is a former Assistant Nueces County Attorney. 

Rene has extensive experience in public and private practice, and in civil and criminal law. Rene is a former Adjunct Professor who taught civil litigaion practice at Del Mar college, and the former President of the Criminal Defense Section of the Corpus Christi Bar Association, and a former  member of the CCBA Board of Directors. Rene is also a former Assitant Federal Public Defender.  Rene is licensed in all state courts, the Southern Distict of Texas Federal Court and the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.  

Rene is a 1987 graduate of Princeton University and a 1992 graduate University of California at Berkeley Law School, both consistently ranked as one of the best institutions of higher learning in the country.  

Rene was born and raised in Corpus Christi and is a graduate of West Oso Hight School. Rene has been involved in giving free legal advice to the elderly and veterans through the Corpus Christi Bar Association pro bono clinics.  Rene has helped feed the homeless through Tacos Not Bombs, and has worked for the taxpayers and school children by leading the effort to fund the building of the new West Oso High School.  

Rene is the primary caregiver for his elderly mother and has always been involved with his  two daughters, one a graduate of Texas Tech University, and the other a student at Texas A&M Corpus Christi.  

Who is the present Nueces County Attorney? Is René running against the incumbent? 

Answer: The present Nueces County Attorney is Laura Jimenez. She has held that position for 20 years and is retiring at the end of her term this year; therefore, the Nueces County Attorney position is an open seat. However, René worked under Laura Jimenez as her Chief of Litigation. It is because of the excellent work he did for her as her Chief of Litigation that Laura Jimenez is endorsing René to be the next Nueces County Attorney. 

What is the job of the Nueces County Attorney? 

Answer: The Nueces County Attorney represents Nueces County in all legal matters, The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (CPS) in the removal of children from homes where they are abused and neglected, victims of family violence by securing protective orders for them, and families and healthcare providers seeking commitments to psychiatric hospitals of those mentally impaired who are a danger to themselves or others. René has experience as Chief of Litigation in all the responsibilities of the Nueces County Attorney, having successfully represented the County, CPS, domestic violence victims, and families and healthcare providers seeking mental commitments for those who are a danger to themselves or others. René has also served on the administrative side of the Nueces County Attorney, advising department heads, including the County Judge and the Commissioner’s Court, rendering well-researched and cited written legal opinions, dealing with Open Record’s request, and successfully defending the county in contested administrative hearings before the Nueces County Civil Service Commission. 

Why should I vote for René C. Flores for Nueces County Attorney? 

René is the only candidate running for Nueces County Attorney who has experience in that office. René was the Nueces County Attorney's Chief of Litigation, successfully defending Nueces County in many lawsuits and saving the taxpayers millions of dollars. Familiarity with the office and its function is important and essential to providing effective leadership; the office must be properly organized and staffed. Having supervised the Nueces County Attorney employees as Chief of Litigation, René knows what it takes to lead the office and to serve and protect the county and its citizens well and save the taxpayers in the long run. That is why the present Nueces County Attorney, Laura Jimenez, has endorsed René. René also has extensive legal experience as a private and public attorney of 28 years and is a graduate of Princeton University and the University of California at Berkeley Law School, two schools consistently ranked as among the best in the country. 

Does the Nueces County Attorney Prosecute those who commit crimes? 

Answer: No. The Nueces County attorney does all civil work: Defending the county against lawsuits, and prosecuting protective orders on behalf of victims of domestic violence, removal of children from homes where they are abused and neglected, and commitments to psychiatric hospitals of those mentally impaired. The Nueces County Attorney also gives legal advice to department heads, including the County Judge and the Commissioner’s Court, renders written legal opinions to County Department heads, deals with Open Records’ request, and represents the county in administrative hearings before the Nueces County Civil Service Commission. 

Is René running against Mark Gonzalez? 

Answer: No. Mark Gonzalez is the District Attorney who prosecutes all criminal cases in Nueces County. The Nueces County Attorney does not handle criminal prosecutions.

Is René a Democrat or a Republican? And why does he belong to that party?

Answer: René is running as a Democrat. The Nueces County Attorney is not a policy making position; so party partisanship is normally not an issue. However, to many people such things do matter, particularly because everything has become so partisan. René believes in the rule of law. One of the jobs of the Nueces County Attorney is to give advice on the law to all the County Department heads, including the County Judge and Commissioner’s Court. René vows to render legal opinions and defend the County without partisanship or bias and based strictly on the letter of the law. 

When is the election? 

Answer: The election is at the same time as the Presidential Election, November 3, 2020. Early voting begins on October 13, 2020 and runs through October 30, 2020. Early voting and, for those who are eligible, mail-in ballot voting is encouraged to avoid the long lines and to promote social distancing. 

Are people still going to be able to vote in person even if the Covid-19 pandemic does not subside? 

Answer: While mail-in voting is encouraged for those who are eligible, in-person voting will take place even if the pandemic does not subside. While the Democratic Party has sued and gotten a court ruling that would allow anyone worried about the pandemic to request a mail-in ballot, the Texas Supreme Court has stayed that ruling; so, for now, only people who are eligible can request a mail-in ballot. Please read the FAQ question below to see who is eligible to request a mail-in ballot. Please check this website or René’s Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/René 4NCA/, as we get closer to the election to see if the eligibility for mail-in ballots will be expanded for the November 3, 2020 Election. 

Who is eligible to request a mail-in ballot, and, if I’m eligible, how do I request one? 

Answer: At the present time, only these people can request a mail-in ballot in Texas: 

· those 65 years or older;

· those disabled;

· those who are out of the county on election day and during the early voting period; or

· those confined in jail, but otherwise eligible; and

· certain members of the military and overseas citizens; however, there are also special provisions for military and overseas voters as indicated by clicking on this link: https://www.votetexas.gov/military-overseas-voters/index.html

If you are eligible for a mail-in ballot, or know someone who is eligible and would like to request one for them, you may order one by clicking on this link: https://webservices.sos.state.tx.us/vrrequest/bbm.asp. Once you apply for one and receive it, you will be given instructions on how and when to submit it. The deadline for the Nueces County Clerk to receive a mail-in ballot request for the November 3, 2020 Election is October 23, 2020. Mail-in Ballots must be received by November 3, 2020, unless they are postmarked; in which case they must be received by the Nueces County Clerk by November 4, 2020 and postmarked by November 3, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. Please note, that mail-in ballots requests must be mailed, not delivered, so make sure that it is mailed with enough time for the Nueces County Clerk to receive it by these deadlines. If you request a mail-in ballot and do not send it in, you may still vote in person, but you must take your mail-in ballot to the voting location and surrender it before you are allowed to vote. 

What if I request a mail-in ballot but change my mind and want to vote in person? Can I still vote in person? 

Answer: Yes, but you must take your mail-in ballot to the voting location and surrender it there before you are allowed to vote.

What if I am not registered to vote, or I am not sure if I’m registered. How do I check to be sure I’m registered? How do I register if I am not registered? Can I register to vote online?

If you want to make sure you are registered to vote, click on this link and enter the requested information: https://www.vote.org/am-i-registered-to-vote/. There is no way to register to vote online in Texas, but, if you need to register to vote, click on this link: https://www.texasdemocrats.org/are-you-registered-to-vote/. After you input the requested information, a form will be filled out for you and sent for you to sign and drop in the mail. You must register by October 5, 2020 to be able to vote in the Presidential Election on November 3, 2020, so please mail your voter registration card with enough time for the County Voter Registrar to receive it by then or hand deliver it to them at the Nueces County Voter Registrar on or before October 5, 2020. 

What is the deadline to register to vote? What if I didn’t vote in the primary, can I still register and vote in the November 3, 2020 Election? Can I still register to vote if I am in jail or a convicted felon? 

The deadline to register to vote in the November 3, 2020 Election is October 5, 2020. You can register and vote in the November 3, 2020 Election even if you were not registered and/or did not vote in the March 3, 2020 primary or July 14, 2020 run-off election. You can register and vote if you are in Jail or a Convicted Felon if you have fully discharged the felony sentence for which you have been convicted of, including parole or probation; you do not need a pardon or have to wait a certain amount of years. Please mail your voter registration card with enough time for the County Voter Registrar to receive it by October 5, 2020 or hand deliver it to them at the Nueces County Courthouse on or before that date. You mail call the County Voter Registrar at (361) 888-0404 if you have any questions about voter registration. 

I hear the President may delay the November 3, 2020 Presidential Election because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Is that true? Can we vote online? 

Answer: While there are such rumors, it is very unlikely that the November 3, 2020 Election will be delayed. The reason is because it would literally take an Act of Congress along with the President to get that done, and it is unlikely the political Parties will agree to do that. In addition, The United States Constitution states the President must be sworn by January of 2021, so there is no time to delay the election. Unfortunately, there is no way to vote online in Texas at this time. Early voting and, for those who are eligible, mail-in ballot voting is encouraged to avoid the long lines and to promote social distancing. Please see the FAQ above to see who is eligible to request a mail-in ballot. 

Where do I vote in Nueces County? What if I don’t know my precinct number or location? 

Answer: Nueces County works on a unified voting location system. That means you may vote in any voting location in Nueces County as long as you are registered in the county by the deadline. While this makes it much more convenient, the county has recently decreased the number of voting locations so please check this site, my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/René 4NCA/, or the County Clerk Elections website around October 15, 2020 to find a voting location convenient for you. Polls are normally open to 8 a.m.to 5 p.m. the first week of early voting, 7 a.m. till 7 p.m. the second week of early voting, and 7 am. to 7 p.m. the day of the Election. Early voting and, for those who are eligible, mail-in ballot voting is encouraged to avoid the long lines and to promote social distancing. Please see the FAQ above to see who is eligible to request a mail-in ballot. 

Do I need to take my voter registration card to vote in person? Do I need my driver’s license? What types of identification do I need to vote?

Answer: You do NOT need to take your voter registration card to vote in person, but you will need one of the following forms of identification: 

• a Texas Driver License issued by the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS)

• a Texas Election Identification Certificate issued by DPS

• a Texas Personal Identification Card issued by DPS

• a Texas Handgun License issued by DPS

• a United States Military Identification Card containing your photograph

• a United States Citizenship Certificate containing your photograph

• a United States Passport (book or card)

Anyone who is registered to vote and who has no other form of identification listed above may obtain a Texas Election Identification Card free of charge. Click on the following link to find out how: https://www.dps.texas.gov/driverlicense/electionid.htm