SANTA CLARITA / ANTELOPE VALLEY : Palmdale City Council Votes to Reduce Term by 5 Months : Politics: Conflict with California’s spring 1996 presidential primary election prompts decision.

PALMDALE —  In an unusual act of political sacrifice, Palmdale City Council members have voted to shorten their terms of office by five months, changing the next municipal election from April, 1996, to November, 1995.

City officials said they made the change to avoid a conflict with California’s spring 1996 presidential primary election.

More than 40 other city councils in Los Angeles County have opted to avoid the double-election clash by extending their terms for 11 months and moving the local balloting to March, 1997.

But at a meeting Wednesday night, the Palmdale council voted 4 to 1 to shorten their terms and hold an early election, saying it will save the city money and help preserve the public’s trust.

“I just cannot in good conscience extend my term,” said Councilman David Myers, whose term will now expire in November, along with those of Councilman Joe Davies and Mayor Jim Ledford.

The ordinance changing the election date will require a final vote Feb. 21 before it becomes law.

At Wednesday’s meeting, the lone opposing vote was cast by Davies, a councilman since 1988. He argued that delaying the election until March, 1997, would save the city thousands of dollars in election costs.

Davies added: “Part of it is selfish. I wouldn’t mind serving some extra time, rather than having it cut short.”

The election date dilemma surfaced after state lawmakers moved up the primary election to March 26, 1996, to give California more clout in picking the next presidential candidates.

The Los Angeles County registrar-recorder’s office, which will conduct this election, told city officials that municipal elections cannot be held at the same time as the state primary because of a shortage of funds, staff and equipment.

County officials also warned that they may not be ready to count city ballots if the local elections are held just two weeks after the state primary. City officials worried that two elections only two weeks apart could lead to confusion and apathy among voters.

Under state law, city elections can only be moved to November, 1995, or March, 1997. As a result, 44 city councils in Los Angeles County are extending their terms and moving their elections to the later date, according to a recent survey by the registrar-recorder’s staff.

In Lancaster, council members tentatively voted to extend their terms by 11 months, adding fuel to a recall campaign aimed at removing three Lancaster councilmen. Recall leaders said a special election was even more urgent because the councilmen had voted to remain in office for an extra 11 months.

After the Lancaster council members restored their election to April, 1996, the recall drive was suspended.

Palmdale City Clerk Victoria Denham told her council that it would cost up to $160,000 to retain the April, 1996, election date in Palmdale because of extra staffing and equipment costs required by the county.

Palmdale’s November, 1995, election will cost between $34,000 and $115,000, depending on the number of candidates and absentee ballots, as well as the number of school districts and water boards that share the expenses, Denham said.