Herlinda Chico, one of three candidates vying for the 4th District City Council seat vacated by Patrick O’Donnell, received another high-profile endorsement this week as current 3rd District Councilwoman Suzie Price offered up her support for Chico via Facebook.
Price becomes the third active city councilmember to endorse Chico, joining 1st District Councilwoman Lena Gonzalez and 9th District Councilman Rex Richardson, who endorsed Chico earlier this month.
“It’s something that I take pride in, and knowing that I have the support of people in leadership like this, that’s just a sign that they’re confident in my ability to represent the 4th District and that I’ll represent the residents well,” Chico told the Post.
The announcement of Price’s support earlier today was posted to Chico’s Facebook page dedicated to her campaign for the 4th District seat and comes just two days after receiving a similar endorsement from the Long Beach Police Officers Association.
“As Chair of the City Council’s Public Safety Committee, I’m proud to stand with the rank and file men and women of the Long Beach Police Department in supporting Herlinda Chico for City Council,” Price’s statement read. “Herlinda is a genuine person who will stand up for what she believes in, even if it’s not the popular thing to do. I look forward to partnering with her in our goal to make Long Beach the safest big city in America.”
Chico is squaring off against Daryl Supernaw, a business consultant who took former 4th District Councilman Patrick O’Donnell to a runoff election for the same position in 2012 before eventually losing, and Richard Lindemann, a retired retail sales manager. The special election will take place April 14 with the person receiving the most votes taking the seat.
Attempts to contact Lindemann have gone unanswered.
Supernaw was reached by phone earlier today but had no news to report on the campaign front. However, in response to an email regarding announcements about endorsements, Supernaw simply wrote “stay tuned…”
In an email to the Signal Tribune last week, Supernaw further discussed his previous campaign strategies.
“In 2012, I was able to win the April primary without using much money, a single mailer or endorsements,” Supernaw said in the email. “This was against two opponents with tons of money, slick mailers and high-profile endorsements. My support came from residents who appreciated my community-advocacy track record and knew that I would always put neighborhood concerns first.”
In an era where even national elections are won and lost on social media, through the lens of online activity one could be led to conclude that there is only one candidate running for the open 4th District seat. However, Supernaw ran a similar grassroots campaign in 2012 without endorsements, a big budget or an online presence to speak of, and ended up in a runoff vote, losing to O’Donnell by just under 700 votes.
Chico’s harnessing of technology is something she said is “indicative of how she’d fit into the current city council” as all members are active on social media. She cited the Mayor’s focus on technology and innovation and the progressive direction of the council, calling it “refreshing.” However, not everything can be accomplished over the internet, which is why Chico said she’ll be using her 15 years of experience of working in neighborhoods throughout Long Beach to balance out her online efforts.
“My campaign is a combination of both the general relationships that I have and supplementing them with the social media campaign,” Chico said. “I think that it’s a nice balance because I’m very accessible. That’s how I would like to represent the 4th district. Patrick O’Donnell was very accessible and I’d like to continue that.”
The council is set to adopt a resolution to designate the ballot listing of the three candidates at next week’s City Council meeting scheduled for February 3.