Three incumbents and nine challengers thus far are vying to represent their respective districts by filling four vacant seats on the Long Beach City Council this year. Two incumbents will be on the ballot, and another is running as a write-in.
One of the challengers, at press time, has not yet qualified but is nevertheless listed on the City’s election website as a potential candidate.
The April 12 municipal primary nominating election will determine the councilmembers for the even-numbered of the city’s nine council districts.
Those who garner 50 percent plus one vote will earn a spot on the council, according to Long Beach City Clerk Maria Garcia. Otherwise, candidates will enter a run-off election on June 7, Garcia said.
Candidates who win the primary or run-off will take their seats on Tuesday, July 19.
District 2
Vice Mayor Suja Lowenthal, who was first elected to represent the 2nd District in 2006, is now termed out and has not announced an intention to be a write-in can- didate.
That district includes parts of the Port of Long Beach, the downtown area and much of the city’s shoreline.
The qualified candidates seeking that seat are Joen Garnica, Eric Gray and Jeannine Pearce.
Garnica was born and raised in Long Beach and has called the 2nd District home for more than 12 years, according to her campaign website.
She owns an interior design firm, Garnica Interiors, Inc., which has been located in the 2nd District since 2003.
Gray owns ITO Solutions, which sells hardware and software and sets up networks and servers for companies and nonprofit organizations, according to his campaign website, which also states that he is a “longtime resident of the 2nd Council District.”
Pearce is “a community organizer and leader who has spent her life dedicated to fighting for equity for those most marginalized, including the LGBTQ community, youth, and working families,” according to her campaign website. She is the vice chair for Long Beach’s Human Relations Committee and served on Mayor Robert Garcia’s transition team.
District 4
Incumbent Daryl Supernaw, who won the 4th District council seat in a special election last April— after former councilmember Patrick O’Donnell was elected to the state assembly— is the only candidate at press time who has qualified to seek that district’s representation.
However, another candidate, Jonathan Paz, is listed on the Long Beach City Clerk’s website as a potential candidate.
The 4th District, which is located on the eastern side of the city, is completely surrounded by districts 2, 3, 5 and 6, as well as the city of Signal Hill.
District 6
Sixth District Long Beach City Councilmember Dee Andrews announced last May that he will seek another term as a write-in candidate in next April’s primary election.
Since 1992, Andrews is only the fourth city councilmember to seek a third term, according to Derek Humphrey, Andrews’s campaign consultant.
Under Long Beach’s city charter, councilmembers may run for a third term, but only as write-in candidates in the primary election. Upon advancing to the general election, their names will appear on the ballot.
So far, Andrews will face three other challengers, as Robert Harmon, Erik Miller and Josephine Villaseñor have all qualified to represent the district that sits just southwest of Signal Hill.
On his Facebook campaign page, Harmon describes himself as a “local community activist, businessman, healthcare worker, medical device entrepreneur and Desert Storm veteran.”
Miller’s campaign website identifies him as an “architectural designer, youth mentor and community leader.”
Villaseñor’s Facebook campaign page describes her as a “longtime resident of District 6, small local business owner [sic] and community volunteer.”
District 8
The 8th District, which includes Bixby Knolls, Los Cerritos and the Virginia Country Club, sits just north of District 7 and south of District 9.
Al Austin, who is seeking a second term, will face challengers Laurie Angel and Wesley Turnbow.
Angel is a business manager for Academic Technology at Cal State Long Beach, providing and supporting informational technology and systems for teaching, learning and academic affairs, according to an email Angel sent to the Signal Tribune.
In an emailed statement, Turnbow described himself as “a former CPA [who] owns a local aerospace company and is president of the Metal Finishing Association of Southern California.”
For more information on the election, visit longbeach.gov/cityclerk/elections/election-home-page .
