The Long Beach municipal election is still months away but four races officially ended Tuesday night as the city council voted to adopt a resolution that will appoint four incumbents to office who were poised to run unopposed.
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First District Councilwoman Lena Gonzalez, City Auditor Laura Doud, City Attorney Charles Parkin and City Prosecutor Doug Haubert were all awarded another term in office Tuesday night when the city council voted to appoint each of them as no contender had formally entered the race before the filing deadline closed.
That window ended January 12 for most candidates and January 16 for those hoping to challenge as a write-in. No challenger filed paperwork at the close of either of those deadlines and according to the city’s municipal code the council had the option to appoint the four incumbents or hold the elections despite them running unopposed.
If the elections were held voters could have submitted write-in candidates for all four offices under the California elections code. However, with Tuesday’s vote all four offices will not appear on the ballot and all four officials can serve another four years in office and the cost of running those elections will likely not be incurred. There terms will begin July 17.
The April 10 election will still decide four council offices (Districts 3, 5, 7 and 9) and the mayoral race along with Long Beach City College and Long Beach Unified School District board positions.