Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : Lancaster Moves City Election to ’97

Citing a calendar conflict posed by California’s new presidential primary date in 1996, the City Council has moved its next municipal election to the following year.

By moving the next city election to March 4, 1997, current council members whose terms were scheduled to expire in April, 1996, will serve an additional 11 months.

The election change was approved unanimously by the council Monday night.

City officials said the change was necessary because the Legislature has moved California’s presidential primary election to the end of March, 1996, hoping to give the state more clout in selecting the next presidential candidates.

But because of timing problems, Los Angeles County officials said they would be unable to provide voting booths and other materials to Lancaster for the city’s election, which was scheduled two weeks after the primary. County officials also said they did not have enough equipment to let Lancaster consolidate its city balloting with the November, 1996, election.

Under state law, however, the city was allowed to move its local election to March in odd-numbered years. Lancaster council members said a change to that date will be less expensive and less confusing to voters than other dates available to the city.