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Candidates endorsed by the local Republican Party are currently on track to claim every seat in Huntington Beach this election cycle, potentially ending a yearslong split between city council members over the direction of the city.
It completes a yearslong route of the Democrat majority that first came onto the dais in 2021, after council members appointed Councilwoman Rhonda Bolton to replace Tito Ortiz six months into his term.
[Read: Rhonda Bolton Appointed to Huntington Beach City Council, Becoming First Black Woman on Dais]
But in 2022, a new council majority came on the scene when Mayor Gracey Van Der Mark and Councilmen Tony Strickland, Casey McKeon and Pat Burns all got elected after campaigning together with the support of the Republican Party, along with City Attorney Michael Gates.
[Read: Republicans on Track to Retake Huntington Beach City Council]
As of the latest election tally Tuesday night, Bolton and Councilmembers Dan Kalmick and Natalie Moser are all on track to lose their reelection campaigns, with all three at least 3,000 votes behind their Republican challengers Chad Williams, Don Kennedy and Butch Twining.
Their possible loss comes after two years of pushing back on the council majority on a series of issues, which their opponents all pledged to support should they win elected office.
One of the biggest controversies has come in the city’s lawsuits arguing they don’t have to implement a housing plan, with the city currently losing cases in both federal and state court against state Attorney General Rob Bonta.
[Read: Federal Appeals Court Slaps Down Huntington Beach’s Anti Housing Lawsuit]
Despite those losses, Gates has said he plans to appeal the case as high as the Supreme Court if necessary.
It also comes as the city is getting ready to implement voter ID for their 2026 elections – despite a recently enacted state law barring the practice.
Lisa Lane Barnes is currently leading the race to become the next city clerk with nearly 58% of the vote, and has promised to figure out a way to implement voter ID in the next election.
[Read: Who Will Take Over Running Surf City’s Elections?]
The new council members will also likely join their colleagues in being the first to appoint members to the city’s book review committee, which council members voted to create last year but never officially established.
[Read: Huntington Beach Creates Panel To Decide What Books Go Into City Library]
Noah Biesiada is a Voice of OC reporter and corps member with Report for America, a GroundTruth initiative. Contact him at nbiesiada@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @NBiesiada.
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