Garlich concedes in Costa Mesa race

Deirdre Newman

After 30 days and some sleepless nights, Planning Commissioner Bruce

Garlich conceded defeat Thursday for the last City Council seat,

opting not to request a recount of the 44-vote margin between him and

fellow Planning Commissioner Eric Bever.

His decision means that when Bever gets sworn in Monday, along

with first-place winner Katrina Foley and second-place finisher Linda

Dixon, there will be no ambiguity looming over the council’s future.

Foley is a Planning Commissioner and Dixon is a former mayor.

Garlich decided not to ask for a recount because he doesn’t think

it will change the results, he said.

“The change to electronic voting makes the likelihood of those

things changing nil,” Garlich said.

Bever expressed relief at the decision, commending his rival for

waging a valiant battle.

“I’m glad that Bruce came to the same conclusion that I came to --

there were really no anomalies in the precinct counts,” Bever said.

Over the last month, the race between Garlich and Bever has been a

rollercoaster. Initially on election night, Garlich barely edged out

Bever for third place. By the next day, the two had switched places

and Bever had taken a solid lead. Since then, the gap had narrowed to

the 44-vote margin.

The stress of the fluctuating votes and whether to seek a recount

took its toll, Garlich admitted.

“I know the stress I was under and am glad it’s over,” Garlich

said. “I wake up at 2 or 3 in the morning and don’t go back to bed

until 5 or 6 a.m. I can already feel the difference. I’m very

comfortable with my decision.”

Garlich added that his decision ultimately didn’t revolve around

cost but simply the unlikelihood of the result changing.

The deadline to call for a recount is 5 p.m. today. Anyone, not

just competitors, can ask for a second look at the ballots.

The two candidates had frequent phone conversations about the

numbers over the past month, including a call Thursday during which

Garlich told Bever of his decision.

Mayor Gary Monahan said it’s good to know who his fellow council

members will be, with no uncertainty lingering.

“It’s nice to kind of have a handle on how things will work out,”

Monahan said. “Both Eric and Bruce are very professional planning

commissioners and would have made great city council members. Eric’s

in office, and hopefully, Bruce will stay on the commission.”

Garlich’s time on the Planning Commission is up since the

councilman who appointed him, Mike Scheafer, lost his seat in

November. He will have served two two-year terms and would like to

continue on the commission, he said.

* DEIRDRE NEWMAN covers government. She may be reached at (714)

966-4623 or by e-mail at deirdre.newman@latimes.com.