Painted red: Huntington Beach seats all-MAGA City Council
The seven Huntington Beach City Council members, City Atty. Michael Gates and new City Clerk Lisa Lane Barnes gathered on stage for a picture Tuesday night.
Each put on a red “Make Huntington Beach Great Again” hat, which had “7-0” written on the side.
That is indeed the new makeup of the city council in Surf City. Tony Strickland dubbed it the “MAGA-nificent 7.”
Chad Williams, Butch Twining and Don Kennedy were sworn in as the new council members, joining conservative holdovers Gracey Van Der Mark, Pat Burns, Casey McKeon and Strickland.
Burns took the ceremonial gavel from Van Der Mark and is now the new mayor, while McKeon was sworn in as the mayor pro tempore.
Meanwhile, minority members Dan Kalmick, Natalie Moser and Rhonda Bolton said their goodbyes as they were unseated after one term, their reelection bids losing in favor of Williams, Twining and Kennedy — the so-called “HB3.” Each of the newcomers was administered the oath of office by state Sen. Janet Nguyen.
The previous council has been known for its fights with Sacramento over housing mandates, voter identification and other issues, and residents might expect more of the same to come.
“I think we’re going to do exactly what we planned on this whole time, to put Huntington Beach first in our agenda,” Burns said. “We’re going to serve the best we can, and we’re going to do what’s right. I always say it’s easy to do the right thing, and I don’t think we’re going to break a sweat doing it because we love this city and we put it first.”
Outgoing City Clerk Robin Estanislau, who is retiring, announced the vote totals that were certified earlier Tuesday by the Orange County Registrar of Voters. Williams got 52,335 votes, Twining earned 43,924 votes and Kennedy had 43,319 votes.
Barnes, a local Realtor, was elected as clerk with 52,956 votes, while Alisa Backstrom — who ran unopposed — was reelected as city treasurer.
Williams, a former U.S. Navy SEAL, said the new leadership was all motivated by the same bond of love for the city.
“We want to balance that budget and grow revenue responsibly, reduce homelessness and hold the line on local autonomy, which is our right as a charter city in the state of California,” Williams said. “We really are up against some unconstitutional mandates, but I think for the first time, we can say collectively we stand together as a treasurer, clerk and council to stand behind our city attorney.”
He said that charter city status was “more than just a receipt that you put in your drawer.” In October, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against Huntington Beach, with a three-judge panel saying that charter cities were subordinate political bodies, not sovereign entities.
Twining, who has been on the Planning Commission along with Kennedy, credited Gates for helping them earn their victory.
“We were running against three incumbents,” Twining said, crediting the volunteers. “The only way we were going to win this was by each of you joining our campaign and telling your neighbors, and you did it, and that’s why we’re up here.”
Twining said he’d like to see the city come together more, following that by saying that he’s a conservative and he will fight for conservative principles.
Kennedy said he believes Huntington Beach’s best days are ahead, emphasizing his Christian faith as the other newcomers did.
“I’m going to pray for favor for the city of Huntington Beach,” he said.
Barnes said Tuesday represented an amazing day in the city.
“I would say to the citizens of Huntington Beach, we’re going to need a lot of your encouragement, a lot of your continued support, to take the city to places that you want it to go,” Barnes said.
Gates said he’s waited four years for this day, adding that unseating three incumbents on the council was highly improbable and signified a clear message from the voters.
Kalmick, Moser and Bolton were each given five minutes for comments before leaving the dais. Kalmick went first, thanking the residents of Huntington Beach for the opportunity to serve.
“We need to build more housing,” he said. “Every single issue in this city can be traced back to a lack of affordable and attainable housing.”
As he continued, Van Der Mark cut him off, saying he had reached his five-minute limit. Kalmick said he didn’t see a timer.
“Do you mind if I finish my last page here, mayor?” Kalmick asked, and Van Der Mark responded that she was going to move on.
“Wild, wild,” Kalmick responded, and could be heard saying “That is absolutely a disgrace” after his microphone was turned off.
Bolton quoted from the Bible, a letter from Thomas Jefferson and former New York City Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, the final quote reading “There is no Democratic or Republican way of cleaning the streets.”
Moser thanked her mentors and late former Huntington Beach mayors Shirley Dettloff and Ralph Bauer. She also quoted from “To Kill a Mockingbird,” that real courage is “when you know you’re licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what.”
“That courage has driven me to fight for the soul of the city, for our libraries, for public safety, for the vulnerable in our community, and for a Huntington Beach where everyone feels they belong,” she said.
Estanislau said she hopes that the divisive nature of the city’s politics can lessen.
“We used to not know each other’s political parties,” she said. “We just didn’t, and now it just seems like there’s a line drawn between the two parties. I know we want so much of the same thing, so I hope going forward that can happen.”
The final Huntington Beach City Council meeting of the year is scheduled for Dec. 17.
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