Gina Ortiz Jones, left, and Rolando Pablos, right, face off during a mayoral debate Monday at Stable Hall. Credit: Screenshot / Youtube

Former Under Secretary of the Air Force Gina Ortiz Jones and one-time Texas Secretary of State Rolando Pablos jabbed at each other during a fiery mayoral debate at Monday night at the Pearl’s Stable Hall.

Jones accused Pablos, a Republican, of being “[Gov. Greg] Abbott’s puppet” and supporting mass deportations. She also blamed him for sky-high electrical prices during Winter Storm Uri.

Meanwhile, Pablos painted Jones, a Democrat, as a Washington, D.C. “carpetbagger.” Further, he questioned whether she used the “Ortiz” middle name for political gain and insinuated she doesn’t even live in San Antonio.

The debate, moderated by San Antonio Report editor-in-chief Leigh Munsil and city hall writer Andrea Drusch, was hosted in collaboration with the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce.

Although the candidates came ready to rumble, both spoke about issues that matter to voters between jabs. The pair were united in saying their top priorities would be developing more affordable housing and funding the police and fire departments.

“Four-thousand units in the 2022 bond is well short of where it needs to be,” Jones said of San Antonio’s housing shortfall. “You’ve got 95,000 folks housing insecure based on our own Strategic Housing Implementation Plan. We’ve got 67,000 folks that are on the wait list for Opportunity Home. So, we have to be much more aggressive in meeting the housing crisis in our community.”

Jones also said she would also prioritize funding for Metro Health.

Meanwhile, Pablos said his administration would focus on reforming and funding the city’s embattled Animal Care Services department along with expanding senior services.

Even so, neither candidate delved into specifics about where they would cut funding as San Antonio stares down a $200 million budget deficit. Both insisted they would need to study budget data first.

One of the night’s most heated exchanges came during a discussion on immigration enforcement — a federal issue with significant local consequences.

Jones accused Pablos — who immigrated from Mexico to San Antonio as a child and once worked as an immigration attorney — of conspiring to force local law enforcement agencies to work with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement as part of President Trump’s mass deportation agenda.

“I have been very clear that I do not think our local law enforcement should be used as ICE agents,” Jones said. “Rolando Pablos refuses to answer that question. I want our local law enforcement focused on violent crimes and actually keeping us safe.”

However, Pablos, who’s backed by the conservative Texas Economic Fund, and has spent decades working in Republican politics, attempted to distance himself from the harshest elements of Trump’s immigration agenda. The candidate said undocumented migrants who commit violent crimes should he deported, but those without papers who are working or have been granted asylum under the Biden administration should be given due process.

“But let me tell you what, with the situation we had with the Migrant Resource Center and all of the money that was used here in San Antonio, we have to keep in mind that we care about San Antonians first,” Pablos said.

Pablos has spent most of the campaign trying to present himself as a moderate, while Jones has focused on portraying him as an Abbott and MAGA patsy.

“Greg Abbott is not necessarily known for supporting independent thinkers,” Jones said. “He appointed Rolando to a very high position [as Texas Secretary of State], and now it’s time for Rolando to pay him back.”

However, Pablos fired back, saying Jones’ antagonistic tone toward GOP elected officials Austin and Washington would prove counterproductive for San Antonio.

“The fact that we’ve had an adversarial relationship with our governor and even our federal officials has hurt us. We need to stop fighting,” Pablos said. “We need to come together as a community. You need a leader, a diplomat, a statesman that can go to Austin, make the case for you and get a meeting.”

The candidates next face off at 7 p.m. Tuesday during a televised debate hosted by KSAT.

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