Venezia: Roaming Newport-Mesa on election night

I usually don’t venture out on election night, but last Tuesday I did.

Stopping by Skosh Monahan’s restaurant in Costa Mesa about 8 p.m., I walked around the back by the kitchen.

There I found a staircase that led me to a large upstairs area serving as a Republican headquarters.

On one wall were projected election results from the Orange County registrar of voters’ website.

Folding chairs were set up for people monitoring the local races; vote tallies were updated throughout the night.

Toward the back of the room were desks and computers and even a play area with toys for children.

Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Costa Mesa) could be seen dressed casually in a Hawaiian shirt, mingling with the crowd, chatting with supporters.

The expectation was that 2nd District supervisorial candidate Michelle Steel would be stopping by, but she didn’t in the hour or so that I was there.

But I did run into Newport Beach City Council candidate Kevin Muldoon. We met a few years ago, and our paths cross occasionally at various functions.

I told him I was surprised to hear that he decided to run for council, since he’s a young lawyer with a budding career and has lived in Newport for only three years.

He said, “I want to give back to the community.”

Judging from the look on my face, he realized I wasn’t buying such a canned answer, but he reiterated that this really was his true motivation.

This newbie to the Newport political scene will face off with competitors Tim Brown, a Newport Beach planning commissioner, and Roy Englebrecht, a fight promoter, on Sept. 18 at the Feet to the Fire forum. It will be interesting to see how Muldoon fares.

He said he looks forward to it. I plan on delving more into Muldoon and his campaign in a future column.

Newport Mayor Rush Hill was also at this gathering. Until recently, Hill was unopposed in his reelection bid. That’s changed now that Marshall “Duffy” Duffield has entered the race.

Hill was eager to share the latest rumor about him. I hadn’t heard it yet.

Apparently tongues are wagging that Hill supposedly offered to support Duffield for a position on the city’s Planning Commission in exchange for Duffield withdrawing from the race.

Hill laughed and called it “nonsense and totally not true.”

And speaking of Duffield, he called me last week after reading my column about his entry into the race.

He took exception to my questioning whether he really had the fire in the belly for politics and my noting the potential conflicts of interest he might face if elected, since he owns a boat business in Newport Beach.

Duffield assured me he has the passion for politics and said he’s looked into possible conflicts he might face on the council and feels confident there won’t be any.

He also explained that his business isn’t confined to Newport Harbor; it spans several states.

I asked if he planned on hiring a campaign consultant.

“You’re not going to like my answer, but I’m thinking of hiring Dave Ellis,” he said of the well-known Republican consultant.

Quite frankly, I think this makes the race even more interesting. I predict Hill’s camp will take shots at Duffield’s choice here.

Duffield certainly runs the risk of his campaign being more about his consultant than the issues.

After all, Ellis is the former Fair Board member many equate with the ill-fated effort — which the district attorney’s office is still looking into — to sell the Orange County Fairgrounds a few years ago. (Disclosure: My husband joined the Fair Board after the sale effort and served with Ellis.)

It will also be interesting to see if Duffield has the stomach for the negative hit pieces for which Ellis is famous. But to his credit, Ellis does have a good success rate when it comes to getting clients elected.

Like I said, this makes this race far more interesting.

After leaving the first election night event, I moved on to Corona del Mar and the home of Marcia Duncan. She was hosting Newport Councilman Keith Curry‘s 74th Assembly District bid party.

Election results were being watched on a large-screen TV.

Curry and his wife, Pam, were in great spirits.

He told me he looks forward to continuing on to victory come November, when he’ll probably face off with Huntington Beach Mayor Matt Harper.

Joe Stapleton, who recently withdrew his bid for the Newport council, was at Curry’s party.

On May 8, I wrote about the rumor that Stapleton was moving to Curry’s district so he could be considered for appointment to Curry’s council seat if Curry vacates it.

This week prying eyes spotted a moving truck by Stapleton’s home.

Turns out it was for his neighbor — not him.

He assured me he hasn’t moved from the peninsula.

“I’ll call you if I move,” he said.

It was a fun night, but I did run into more than a few people who asked that I not mention I saw them. Gotta love local politics.

BARBARA VENEZIA, whose column appears Fridays, lives in Newport Beach. She can be reached at bvontv1@gmail.com.