2019 Los Angeles special elections

The 2019 Los Angeles special elections were held on March 5, 2019, and June 4, 2019. Voters elected candidates in a nonpartisan primary, with runoff elections scheduled for May 14, 2019 and August 13, 2019. One of the fifteen seats in the City Council were up for election while one of the seven seats in the Board of Education were up for election.^[1]

2019 Los Angeles special elections

← 2017 June 4, 2019 August 13, 2019 2020 →
1 out of 15 seats in the City Council 8 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Party Democratic Republican Seats before 14 1 Seats won 0 1 Seats after 14 1 Seat change
March 5, 2019 May 14, 2019
1 out of 7 seats in the LAUSD Board of Education 4 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Party Democratic Republican Seats before 5 1 Seats won 1 0 Seats after 6 1 Seat change 1

Two seats were up for election due to the vacancy of two members, councilman Mitchell Englander of District 12 and Ref Rodriguez of Board District 5, who both resigned in the wake of felony charges against them.^[2][3] The Board District 5 did not have an appointed representative unlike Council District 12, who had previous councilmember Greig Smith installed to finish the term.^[4][5]

Municipal elections in California are officially nonpartisan; candidates' party affiliations do not appear on the ballot.

City Council

2029 Los Angeles City Council District 12 election special

← 2015 August 13, 2019 2020 →

Candidate John Lee Loraine Lundquist Scott Abrams First round 8,197 18.74% 8,635 19.74 5,300 12.12% Runoff 19,426 51.55% 18,259 48.45% Eliminated     Candidate Jay Beeber Frank Ferry Charles Sean Dinse First round 4,169 9.53% 3,791 8.67% 3,149 7.20% Runoff Eliminated Eliminated Eliminated

City Councilor before election Greig Smith City Councilor John Lee

District 12

Candidates

• John Lee, chief of staff of vacated councilmember Mitchell Englander
• Loraine Lundquist, educator and scientist
• Scott Abrams, director of constituent service offices for Congressman Brad Sherman^[6]
• Carlos Amador, human rights and civil rights advocate^[7]
• Jay Beeber, executive director of Safer Streets L.A.^[8]
• Annie Cho, entrepreneur^[9]
• Jeffery Daar, attorney^[10]
• Frank Ferry, former Mayor of Santa Clarita^[11]
• Jack Kayajian, administrator for the office of City Attorney Mike Feuer^[12]
• Stella T. Maloyan, executive at Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy^[13]
• Raji Rab, pilot and flight instructor^[14]
• Brandon Saario, actor^[14]
• Navraj Singh, small business owner^[14]
• Joshua Michael Yeager, Chatsworth Neighborhood Council member^[14]

Did not make ballot

• Jason Aula
• David F. Balen
• Michael Benedetto, President of the Granada Hills South Neighborhood Council
• Pamela Bolin, Northridge West Neighborhood Council member
• Daniel Garcia, principal at Praetorian Resource
• Jose Luis Gonzalez, recreation facility director
• Hugh Schurtz, consultant and spokesperson
• Daniel Tsurif, vice president of Artist Management & Digital Strategy at BRXND
• Serena Oberstein, former L.A. Ethics Commissioner^[15]

Withdrew

• Charles Sean Dinse, police senior lead^[16]
• Brandii Grace, game designer and educator

Results

2019 Los Angeles City Council District 12 special election^[17]

Primary election
Candidate		Votes	%
Loraine Lundquist		8,635	19.74
John Lee		8,197	18.74
Scott Abrams		5,300	12.12
Jay Beeber		4,169	9.53
Frank Ferry		3,791	8.67
Charles Sean Dinse		3,149	7.20
Jeff Darr		1,668	3.81
Stella Maloyan		1,532	3.50
Carlos Amador		1,411	3.23
Brandon Saario		1,406	3.21
Jack Kayajian		1,233	2.82
Navraj Singh		987	2.26
Annie Eunwoo Cho		864	1.98
John Yeager		734	1.68
Raji Rab		669	1.53
Total votes		43,745	100.00
General election
John Lee		19,426	51.55
Loraine Lundquist		18,259	48.45
Total votes		37,772	100.00

LAUSD Board of Education

District 5

Candidates

• Jackie Goldberg, former Assemblymember for the 45th district, Councilmember for District 13, and board member for District 3^[18]
• Heather Repenning, director of external affairs for Mayor Eric Garcetti^[19]
• Allison Bajracharya, former operations and strategy chief at the Camino Nuevo Charter Academy^[20]
• Ana Cubas, professor at East Los Angeles College and founder and president of Latina Public Service Academy^[21]
• Cynthia Gonzalez, principal at Diego Rivera Learning Complex
• Graciela Ortiz, Huntington Park councilwoman and social worker^[22]
• Rocio Rivas, community representative^[23]
• Salvador "Chamba" Sanchez, professor at Los Angeles City College, community activist and former janitor union organizer^[20]
• David Valdez, Los Angeles County arts commissioner^[20]
• Nestor Enrique Valencia, City of Bell councilmember^[20]

Did not make ballot

• Laura Garza, politician and garment worker^[24]

Withdrew

• Erika Alvarez, teacher^[25]
• Eduardo Cisneros, director of National Census Program and former field director for former Board member Yolie Flores^[26]
• Scott Cody, teacher, Instructional Support Specialist, and adjunct professor at USC Rossier School of Education^[27]
• Bennett Kayser, former Board member^[25]
• Fidencio Joel Gallardo, City of Bell councilmember^[25]
• James O'Gabhann III, teacher^[25]
• Justine Gonzalez, president of the City of Los Angeles Human Relations Commission^[26]

Results

2019 LAUSD District 5 special election^[28]

Primary election
Candidate		Votes	%
Jackie Goldberg		15,935	48.18
Heather Repenning		4,341	13.13
Graciela Ortiz		4,310	13.03
Allison Bajracharya		1,986	6.00
Ana Cubas		1,145	3.46
David Valdez		678	2.05
Rocio Rivas		545	1.65
Salvador "Chamba" Sanchez		522	1.58
Nestor Enrique Valencia		382	1.15
Total votes		29,844	100.00
Jackie Goldberg		20,552	71.35
Heather Repenning		8,253	28.65
Total votes		28,952	100.00

References

1. Murphy, Ryan (June 4, 2019). "L.A. County election results". Los Angeles Times.
2. Chou, Elizabeth. "LA councilman Mitchell Englander stepping down…" Los Angeles Daily News, October 11, 2018
3. Stokes, Kyle (July 22, 2018). "Ref Rodriguez Pleads Guilty To Felony And Misdemeanor Charges, Resigns From LAUSD Board". LAist.
4. Romero, Esmeralda Fabián (August 6, 2018). "100,000 LAUSD students have no representative. Here are 5 things to know about Board District 5, vacated by Ref Rodriguez's resignation". LA School Report.
5. Reyes, Emily Alpert; Zahnizer, David (January 15, 2019). "Former L.A. Councilman Greig Smith tapped to fill vacant seat until election". Los Angeles Times.
6. Chou, Elizabeth (May 20, 2019). "LA CITY COUNCIL ELECTION: From Aliso Canyon to the homeless, Scott Abrams says he's ready to resolve issues". Los Angeles Daily News.
7. Simón, Yara. "Meet Carlos Amador, a Formerly Undocumented Immigrant Running for LA City Council". Remezcla.
8. Chou, Elizabeth (May 20, 2019). "LA CITY COUNCIL ELECTION: As a leader, Jay Beeber wants to 'preserve this way of life'". Los Angeles Daily News.
9. Chou, Elizabeth. "LA CITY COUNCIL ELECTION: For Annie Cho, CD12 leadership starts with listening and advocacy". Los Angeles Daily News.
10. Moore, Maloy; Reyes, Emily Alpert (May 19, 2019). "Can a Democrat win an L.A. City Council seat long held by Republicans?". Los Angeles Times.
11. Lunetta, Caleb (January 5, 2019). "Former Santa Clarita mayor announces candidacy for Los Angeles City Council". The Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
12. Chou, Elizabeth (May 20, 2019). "LA CITY COUNCIL ELECTION: Jack Kayajian wants to tackle CD12 issues with 'behind-the-scenes' experience at City Hall". Los Angeles Daily News.
13. "Stella Maloyan,Nonprofit Executive and Community Activist to Run for L.A. City Council's 12th District". RAG Mamoul. July 3, 2019.
14. Ogilvie, Jessica P. (April 1, 2019). "LA's City Council District 12 Seat Is Up For Grabs. Here Are The 15 People Vying To Fill It". LAist.
15. Reyes, Emily Alpert (March 28, 2019). "Judge bars former ethics panel member from running for L.A. City Council". Los Angeles Times.
16. Chou, Elizabeth (May 20, 2019). "LA CITY COUNCIL ELECTION: Sean Dinse wants to go beyond LAPD experience to bring leadership". Los Angeles Daily News.
17. "City of Los Angeles Council District 12 Special Runoff Election August 13, 2019". Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk.
18. Burke, Michael (May 15, 2019). "Jackie Goldberg wins L.A. Unified school board seat in special election". EdSource.
19. Callwood, Brett (January 4, 2019). "HEATHER REPENNING CAMPAIGNS FOR LAUSD BOARD OF EDUCATION". LA Weekly.
20. "Meet the candidates for the LAUSD board seat left vacant by Ref Rodriguez". Los Angeles Daily News. March 3, 2019.
21. Rivera, Seline (February 26, 2019). "Ana Cubas, hija de padre jornalero, quiere asiento en la junta de LAUSD". Daily Press (in Spanish).
22. "Huntington Park Councilwoman Graciela Ortiz Announces Candidacy for LAUSD Board District 5". Los Cerritos Community News. July 28, 2018.
23. Plachta, Ariella (February 14, 2019). "LAUSD's Spanish-speaking parents engage candidates in forum ahead of school board special election". Los Angeles Daily News.
24. Friedman, Mark (March 13, 2019). "NY to LA, Marchers Demand US Hands off Venezuela". Random Lengths News.
25. Stokes, Kyle (December 6, 2018). "A Field Guide To The March 2019 Primary Election For LAUSD School Board". LAist.
26. Romero, Esmeralda Fabián (December 5, 2018). "10 candidates will be on the ballot in March to fill LAUSD's vacant school board seat". LA School Report.
27. "17 Candidates File to Run for LAUSD Area 5 Board Seat". La Comrade. December 4, 2019.
28. "LAUSD District 5 Special Runoff Election May 14, 2019". Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk.