ADULT DAY-CARES WARNED: SOMEONE WILL BE WATCHING

By Juan Montoya
They go by darling names.
Lupitas, Riverside, Ministry, Mom and Pop, Cielito Lindo, La PLaza and even the Bronwsville Housing Authority's High Rise.
Yet, all these adult day-care and elderly housing facilities have one thing in common: they are all places that have willingly allowed politiqueros and politiqeras free access to harvest the votes of the elderly and the mentally-impaired clients.
As a result of the investigation into the massive voter fraud that occurred during the July 31 runoff election to prepare for the lawsuit filed by Yolanda Begum against Erin Hernandez Garcia in the JP 2-2 contest, it became evident that the managers and providers in these facilities had a hand in perpetrating the harvest of these votes.
Scores of taped interviews were gathered during that inquiry that shows that many of these day-care centers were allowing politiqueros paid by some candidates – mainly those working for the Hernandez machine – to have a run of their facilities convincing the gullible elderly to board the vans and vote according to their wards.
"The lady at the day care told me to come with her so we could vote," runs the common narratives from these elderly. "She said not to worry about anything. She said that afterwards we would get a plate of barbecued chicken."
Then, under the eyes of the day-care operators, the woman and a handful of her companions were loaded on the van, provided with a pre-marked sample ballot and told who to vote for. When they arrived at the polling place, their handlers told them not to alight the vehicle, even though they were not disabled and could have easily alighted and cast their vote on their own.
Election office personnel would come to the open doors of the van and ask the politiqueros how many ballots they wanted for the people trapped inside.
"I turned to my friend and told her that this didn't feel right," said an elderly woman. "It's getting to be like in Matamoros where they just tell you which name to mark."
This scene was repeated hundreds of times during the early walk-in voting period leading to the primary election and the runoff. In some case, some witnesses reported what they felt was blatant voter fraud and abuse.
Robert Gracia, a retired federal law enforcement employee felt so affronted by what he saw at the Cristo Rey Catholic Church early voting place that he called police and the newspaper to report it.
"It was gross," he told the local daily.
And Zeke Silva, who came across Norma Hernandez (Erin's mother and wife of Pct. 2 commissioner Ernie Hernandez) and politiquero Amadeo Rodriguez Jr. as they were leading his father to a van, confronted them and prevented them from taking him.
It later turned out that the manager of the day care had prohibited Hernandez and Rodriguez from taking the elderly from the facility. Who authorized them?
"We think that there are providers and employees of the facilities who are paid to let the politiqueros take the elderly from the centers," said a volunteer for Citizens Against Voter Abuse (CAVA).
It is still unknown what the policy of the Brownsville Housing Authority to have allowed it become the domain of Norma Hernandez and her politiqueras who feel they are entitled to harvest the votes of the tenants there. Ernie Hernandez was a city commissioner for many years and may even have relatives working in the high-rise's management.
In fact, on the same day that the trial on Begum's lawsuit was to begin, a handful of politiqueras such as Herminia Becerra (in picture at left ) fanned out across the city to urge the subpoenaed witnesses not to show up in contempt of the court order. Herminia was photographed inside the high-rise by a Begum supporter.
When Begum was campaigning, Norma and her entourage appeared and harassed them taking pictures of them and shouting that Yolanda didn't have a law degree and that Erin did. There were also hushed whispers that Begum was a member of "el Cartel."
Since the services that the day-care centers are paid with federal funds and the high-rise is also the recipient of these funds, it stands to reason that federal authorities would take some interest in any Voting Rights violations that may go on there. Yet, locals are still waiting to see what the federal authorities in their bunker between Harrison and Sixth and Seventh streets are going to do.
"These excesses took place right down the street from them and they didn't see anything?," asked an incredulous county employee. "What are they waiting for, for the elderly to take the time to go knock on their door and give them statements?"
Regardless, as Rogelio Ortiz, the Cameron County Elections Administrator hems and haws at the thought of actually enforcing the Election Code, other eyes may be watching as then first day of early voting October 22 (this coming Monday) approaches.