Newport-Mesa city council hopefuls declare

Although several school board seats and even sanitary and water districts will be on the ballots this fall, the most watched races in Newport-Mesa on Nov. 7 will probably be two city council seats in Costa Mesa and five in Newport Beach.

After the Friday deadline to file candidacy papers, it’s clear that Newport-Mesa voters will face lengthy ballots and a slew of races.

In Costa Mesa, where two seats are up for election, having a running mate may be the key to winning.

Costa Mesa Mayor Allan Mansoor entered the race with the most money, according to recent campaign finance disclosures, and strong Republican backing, and he has stuck close to candidate Wendy Leece, though he has not formally endorsed her.

But he faces hearty opposition from a new political action group, Return to Reason, which is backing a team of candidates: Bruce Garlich and Mike Scheafer.

Newport Beach’s ballot will list an unprecedented six of seven seats, five of which are contested. Races to watch will be District 1, where incumbent Tod Ridgeway is termed out and four people are vying to replace him; and districts 4, 5 and 7, where newcomers are taking on appointed incumbents who haven’t yet faced voters.

Ridgeway and Gary Monahan, who is termed out of his Costa Mesa council seat, don’t intend to fade away: Ridgeway is seeking an Orange County Water District seat and Monahan is running for the Costa Mesa Sanitary District.

For information on school board races and special districts, visit the Orange County Registrar of Voters’ website at www.oc.ca.gov. Newport council candidates can be found on the city’s website, www.city .newport-beach.ca.us. The Costa Mesa city clerk’s office has a list of that city’s council candidates.

THE CANDIDATES

COSTA MESA CITY COUNCIL

(Two at-large seats)

NEWPORT BEACH CITY COUNCIL

District 1

District 3

District 4

District 5

District 6

District 7

COAST COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT TRUSTEE

Area 1

Area 4

Area 5

NEWPORT-MESA UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT TRUSTEE

Area 2

Area 4

Area 5

Area 7

COSTA MESA SANITARY DISTRICT

IRVINE RANCH WATER DISTRICT DIRECTOR

Covers parts of Costa Mesa and Newport Beach

MESA CONSOLIDATED WATER DISTRICT DIRECTOR

Division 4 (part of Costa Mesa)

Division 5 (parts of Newport-Mesa)

ORANGE COUNTY WATER DISTRICT DIRECTOR

Division 5

Division 7

MUNICIPAL WATER DISTRICT OF ORANGE COUNTY

Division 5 (Newport Beach)