Today is July 15th, the day that candidates for City Council, Rent Control Board, Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District Board and Santa Monica College Board can “pull papers” and officially announce their plans to run for office.
With papers in-hand, candidates need to receive 100 signatures from voters in the area where they will seek election (some races have specific boundaries, others are city-wide) and submit them to the City Clerk by August 9. The deadline can be extended to August 14 under specific circumstances, including if incumbent candidates decide not to seek re-election.
The city held a workshop this morning for candidates, but if someone is interested in running for office and missed the meeting, they can schedule an appointment with city staff to receive training and their papers. For more details on how to run for office, click here to visit the city’s website.
While the race has just officially gotten underway today; it already feels like it has been going on for months. A “Unity Slate” of four candidates for City Council: Dan Hall, Ellis Raskin, Barry Snell and Natalya Zernitskaya, have been earning endorsement after endorsement from political organizations including Santa Monicans for Renters Rights, Santa Monica Forward, the Santa Monica Democratic Club and other issue specific groups.
None of the four incumbent Councilmembers who are up for re-election have declared that they are running this year, and none “pulled papers” at this morning’s meeting. After over a decade on the Council, Gleam Davis has announced she will not be seeking re-election. Councilmembers Oscar de la Torre, Christine Parra and Mayor Phil Brock have stated they are still considering whether or not to run.
Vice Mayor Lana Negrete and Councilmembers Jesse Zwick and Caroline Torosis are not up for re-election until 2026.
At least three other candidates have announced City Council campaigns. Ericka Lesley, president of the rent control board and until-last-week member of the Downtown Santa Monica Board, has participated in all of the endorsement processes and could mount a strong campaign for office. Marcus Owens was a candidate in the last election and also appeared in pre-election forums. Another past Council candidate, Whitney Bain has purchased ads with the Santa Monica Lookout.
Electoral politics have clearly been on the mind of the incumbent Councilmembers even if they are keeping their intentions close to their respective vests. At last week’s meeting, the looming election season was repeatedly given as a reason not to pass a code of ethics and both Raskin (Planning Commission) and Lesley were not re-appointed to positions they held with the city, giving Brock an opportunity to question their leadership in the press.
“The status quo is not working for Santa Monica,” said Brock in a quote to the Lookout, perhaps inadvertently providing text for campaign opponents. “We will need new blood to inspire change.”
