Carlos St. James joins Pedernales Electric Cooperative board of directors; Mark Ekrut reelected

Carlos St. James joined the Pedernales Electric Cooperative board of directors after winning the District 2 election with 55.1% of the votes, defeating opponent Elexis Grimes.

District 2 includes Leander, parts of Cedar Park and portions of Liberty Hill while District 3 includes the southwestern region of Cedar Park, Jonestown, Lago Vista and Volente.

The details

PEC held its district 2 and 3 board elections from May 19 through June 12, with approximately 7.3% of eligible residents casting their votes.

In District 3, incumbent Mark Ekrut was reelected to his third term on the board with 53% of the vote, defeating challenger Matthew Weldon. Ekrut was elected to serve as president during the board’s June meeting.

Both Ekrut and St. James will serve three-year terms.

Emily Pataki, former District 2 governor and board president, had reached her term limit after serving on the board for 12 years.

Diving in deeper

Since PEC is a member-owned electric utility cooperative, customers can vote for the board of directors, which approves decisions about rates, services and other aspects of the cooperative.

St. James, a Leander resident, has two decades of experience in the electric power sector. He has served on the CleanTX board of directors and Leander’s Parks and Recreation Committee. Beyond co-founding the Argentine Renewable Energies Chamber, St. James also founded The Leander Foundation and Keep Leander Beautiful.

Ekrut currently serves as a municipal judge for the city of Jonestown. Additionally, he is a member of both the Texas Municipal Court Association and the Sheriff’s Association of Texas. Additionally, he has owned a small business in Cedar Park for more than three decades, according to a news release from PEC.

Quote of note

“We want to thank Emily for her many years of service and leadership, and we’d like to congratulate Mark on another term and welcome Carlos to the board,” Travis Cox, PEC board secretary-treasurer and District 4 director, said in a statement. “This is an exciting time to be joining PEC. Together, we’ll continue to meet the needs of our growing membership while looking at ways to optimize our operations and ensure long-term health.”