Election 2020: Bob Whalen and George Weiss stay ahead in Laguna Beach City Council race
Local election results, much like the presidential race, remained too close to call the morning after the election.
In Laguna Beach, the leading candidates in the race for two contested seats on the Laguna Beach City Council eagerly awaited an update in the reporting from the polls on Wednesday evening.
The new drop of votes that came at 5 p.m. barely moved the needle, with a total of 88 votes cast for the five candidates in the race.
As the votes counted continued to trickle in, Mayor Bob Whalen led the group as he seeks a third term on the dais.
Whalen, who was first elected to the council in 2012, expressed tempered optimism about his chances going into Tuesday evening. On Wednesday afternoon, Whalen indicated that he was confident after seeing the early return of results.
“Historically, the election night results have held up, at least here in Laguna in the elections that I have been involved in,” said Whalen, who added that he was one of many Laguna Beach voters to submit their ballot early. “I am pretty comfortable that they’ll prove out.”
Close to two thirds of Laguna Beach voters returned their vote-by-mail ballot, according to data provided by the Orange County Registrar of Voters.
Looking back on a unique campaign in which the coronavirus pandemic limited in-person events and interactions, Whalen speculated that his track record on wildfire mitigation and public safety appealed to the voters.
“[Public safety has] always been my priority number one and will continue to be,” Whalen said. “Not just fire safety, obviously, but police and marine safety. We’ve got sort of a three-pronged public safety effort here.”
Whalen has 6,046 votes (24.59%) as of an update given Thursday at 5 p.m., and he is well positioned to defend his council seat.
As his path to another term narrowed sharply, President Trump sent in the lawyers Wednesday, seeking to stop or reverse vote counts in three battleground states.
The same could not be said, however, for Mayor Pro Tem Steve Dicterow, a longtime member of the council who has served five terms in total. Dicterow projects to finish last among the five candidates, currently garnering 3,309 votes (13.46%).
In the lead for the second available seat is George Weiss with 5,348 (21.75%), followed closely by Ruben Flores with 5,157 (20.98%).
Dicterow congratulated Whalen and Weiss on their campaigns. He ran on a platform that included wanting to give the city’s neighborhoods back to the residents as opposed to what he called “the day trippers.” Dicterow added that he had not previously faced defeat in an election.
“I feel very comfortable that I ran the campaign that I wanted to run,” Dicterow said. “I got out there, I went door-to-door, got to at least 3,500 homes, and if you get to all those homes and you still can’t get people to vote for you, then that’s a message.”
With the ballot asking voters to choose two candidates for the City Council, there was likely some overlap between Weiss and Flores voters. Weiss, who was a co-founder of Laguna Residents First, and Flores both have shown a desire to preserve the “look and feel” of Laguna Beach.
“I’m looking forward to serving,” Weiss said, adding that he felt he was in good shape as far as the election results. “Every decision I make, I’m going to be guided by what’s in the best interest of the largest number of residents, and [making sure] it’s fiscally sound and compatible with our environment and compatible with the development that’s in Laguna currently.
“That’s what I’m after, that’s what I’m about, and that’s what I’m going to do.”
Larry Nokes was in fourth place with 4,723 votes (19.21%).
There is also a close, two-person race to take the place of Lisette Chel-Walker as Laguna Beach city clerk. Ann Marie McKay is in the lead with 6,250 votes (51.98%). Mariann Tracy has received 5,773 votes (48.02%).
Check dailypilot.com for continuing election coverage and results.
The presidential election has turned into a nail-biter. Will President Donald Trump serve a second term or will former Vice President Joe Biden become the next president? The waiting game has begun. Here are the latest headlines for our Orange County readers.
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