Torrance Seats New Council Members

Two new members took their seats on the Torrance City Council and two incumbents departed Tuesday amid formal speeches and a few impassioned goodbys.

Maureen O’Donnell and Don Lee were sworn in as first-term council members following their victories in the March 3 election. They replaced two incumbents: Dan Walker, who stepped down to run for the state Assembly, and Timothy Mock, who lost his bid for reelection. Incumbent George Nakano took his seat for a third term after winning reelection.

Traces of the hard-fought campaign lingered in the council chambers. Councilman Mark Wirth, who is a longtime friend of Mock, criticized the race as “full of personal attack. . . . The election here was too political, and it did take its toll on Tim Mock.”

Mock and Walker thanked their colleagues before leaving the council dais. Then Lee took Mock’s seat, and O’Donnell assumed Walker’s seat.

Ten candidates, including eight challengers, competed for three at-large seats on the seven-seat council.

O’Donnell was the top vote-getter, with 18%, followed by Nakano, with 17%, and Lee, with 15.3%. Mock trailed at 14.2% and some blamed his loss on questions about city fiscal policy after the disappearance of $6.2 million of city funds in an investment scandal.