Juan Martinez, the owner of Don Juan Mex Grill and William Penn Storage in Easton, announced his candidacy for Northampton County Council at a Feb. 11 county courthouse press conference arranged by the county Republican chair. This will be his first run for elected office.
Martinez highlighted that his main concerns for his candidacy are focused on responsibly managing county funds.
“We already have the resources,” Martinez said. “More responsibly allocating the existing resources that we have instead of increasing and hurting the local taxpayers — that’s really what I believe in, and that’s why I’m running as a county government that works for the people.”
Martinez said that these concerns largely come from his background as a small business owner, which he believes gives him a unique perspective on county issues.
“Being a small business owner, I know what it’s like to struggle,” he said. “I know what it’s like to start something from the ground up.”
Nicole Pietrzak, the director of administration for Northampton County, said that it is not uncommon for candidates to have a background outside of political experience.
“I think you see a broad cross-section that’s reflective of the people of Northampton County,” Pietrzak said. “And that at local government, you have people running from all kinds of backgrounds, bringing all different kinds of experience to the table.”
Martinez also referred to his status as an immigrant as to why he is running as a Republican in what is largely a bipartisan county, saying that his experience gave him a “different perspective” after witnessing “a lot of corruption” in his home government.
“I want to continue to make sure that the American spirit lives and people realize that we have something special here in the United States of America,” Martinez said.
