3 Ousted City Council Members to Run Again
Three of four Bell Gardens City Council members who were recalled from office last December said Friday that they will try to recapture their seats in the April municipal election.
Mayor Robert Cunningham and council members Allen Shelby, Letha Viles and Douglas O’Leary were ousted from office Dec. 10 after a rocky yearlong battle over planned zoning changes. Critics said the changes were designed to drive out the town’s poor residents, a majority of whom are Latino.
Cunningham said that he will not run, but Shelby, Viles and O’Leary have said they do not believe they were recalled for good reason and have blamed a handful of absentee landlords and disgruntled property owners for fanning the recall. The four will be replaced in a special election March 10. However, they can run again in the regular April election.
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