Advertisement

Council Runner-Up Might Still Win Seat

Share

Hoping to avoid a costly special election if one of its current members is elected mayor in November, the City Council is considering an ordinance to appoint the runner-up in the council race to the vacant seat.

Three seats on the council will be up for grabs come November, including Mayor Paul Lawrason’s seat. Lawrason is retiring and two council members, Bernardo Perez and Patrick Hunter, are planning to run for the post.

Although Hunter’s term is up, Perez’s term does not expire until 1998. If Perez is elected mayor, the city will have to schedule a special election to fill his post, costing up to $15,000, said Councilwoman Eloise Brown.

Advertisement

Brown, whose term is also up in November, has not decided whether to run again.

In the council race, the two top vote-getters will win seats. Brown asked that if Perez becomes mayor that the council appoint the third-highest vote-getter to Perez’s seat.

But City Atty. Cheryl Kane said that because such an ordinance is not expressly permitted under state law, it may not withstand a court challenge.

“Given the specificity with which the state Legislature has addressed filling vacancies on the City Council, it is very likely that the courts would find that the city is preempted from adopting an ordinance outside of the scheme of the Government Code,” Kane said in a letter to the council.

The council is scheduled to discuss the proposal at its meeting Wednesday night.

Advertisement