By CATHERINE DONNELLY
Special to the PRESS
The sudden death of Eva Jean Dalton last month left an unexpected vacancy on the South Padre Island (SPI) City Council for Place 5, necessitating a special election that will be held on February 3, 2024. Early voting spans from January 17 to January 30, 2024, with specific dates and times to be announced soon.
Four residents threw their hats in the ring: Lisa Graves, Tally Ragsdale, Brad Robinson, and Jennifer Stout. Here is some information on each to get to know them before voting starts for next month’s election. The position will be interim, serving the remainder of Dalton’s term, which is set to conclude later this year.
Lisa Graves is originally from Harlingen and has a Marketing degree. Growing up, she visited the Island regularly with family and friends. She moved to the island in 2005 to work with her mom in real estate and received her real estate license, which she still maintains. In 2020, she took over her fiancé’s family business as Operations Manager for Isla Tours and Captain Murphy’s.
Since moving to the island, Graves has been involved in local politics. She has been a Walk for Women committee member and Vice Chairwoman of the SPI Special Events Committee. She has also served on the SPI Chamber of Commerce Islanders Committee and Board of Directors and served as a Laguna Madre Humane Society Board Member from 2017-2019.
“I want to use my experience in community involvement as an advantage in serving South Padre Island and be a balanced representative of the Island’s residents, businesses, and tourists,” said Graves. “I’m motivated and dedicated to serving the Island and its needs.”
Graves considers herself fully anchored in the community as a pro-business and pro-tourism candidate. Her key issues are to see the venue tax projects through to their fruition, a dog park on the Island, more youth sports, the development of the second causeway and to partner with Cameron County on a deep-water marina. She wants to develop a solid relationship with city staff, encourage regular feedback from the community, and maintain complete transparency and accountability in her work.
“I believe our Island is evolving in the right direction, so my intention is not to change current policies and procedures, but to assist the Council to continue to stay the course,” says Graves.
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