Fall Elections Draw Few Contestants. So Far.
In five days potential Fullerton City Council candidates for Districts 1,2, and 4 will be able to “pull” nomination papers. I don’t know why the phrase is “pull papers” but that’s what they call it.
At this point you can only tell who’s running by those who have created candidate committees. And that’s a short list, indeed. Committees are listed on the City Clerk’s webpage, here, under disclosures.
In Districts 1 and 2 only the incumbents Fred Jung and Nick Dunlap have committees. This is not unusual as incumbents are hard to beat, but usually some brave souls sign up. Of course you don’t need to have a committee unless you plan on raising money above a certain threshold. I believe it’s a thousand bucks, but don’t quote me on that.
In District 4 there are two candidate committees on record. As previously noted one is for retired City employee Vivian Kitty Jaramillo who apparently used to write parking tickets back in the day.
The other candidate is Linda Whitaker, wife of outgoing councilman Bruce Whitaker. Neither of these candidates has any experience as an elected person, although Jaramillo has run previously and lost badly when council elections were held city-wide. She was subsequently party to a lawsuit to force district elections where she must have figured she has a chance of winning. She’s the Democrat anointed candidate and is supported by the Ahmad Zahra and Shana Charles, our megalomaniacal and dingbat councilpersons, respectively.
Jaramillo would be a very poor choice as a vocal tax proponent and the beneficiary of City CalPERS payments. A win by her would create a new council majority run by the manipulative Zahra. Ms. Whitaker would probably be better on some revenue raising issues, but some have suggested that she is the moving spirit behind her husband’s disastrous votes on closing Wilshire Avenue for the benefit of a few restaurants, and the support of the nonsensical “boutique” hotel. I don’t know if this story is responsible, but the votes are testament to exceedingly poor judgment. She might also be inclined to form a majority with Jung and Dunlap as her husband has done.
It remains to be seen if either Jaramillo or Whitaker intend to run vigorous campaigns and how much money they can raise to do it.
So far nobody else has shown interest publicly – yet. The deadline to return papers to the City Clerk is August 9th – only a month away unless an incumbent pulls out. Then the period is extended 5 calendar days.
It would be nice to see somebody else pop up to run in the 4th District, but time is running out fast.
Jaramillo vs. Whitaker. What a choice. At least Bruce is gone after 14 years of utter uselessness.
In the 12 years I lived in Fullerton before District elections, I cast roughly 20 votes for City Council. In the 8 years since district elections I’ve only been able to cast one vote, in 2018. Foisting the district election disaster on the entire city is reason enough to forever disqualify Jaramillio from City Council.
That’s a great point.
At Large elections to District elections…..
Constituents allowed to vote for one Council Member once every 4 years.
Everyone used to be able to vote for three Council Members on one 2 year cycle, and also vote for the other two seats on the next two year cycle.
Every voter now has NO say on 80% of Fullerton’s City Council.
Quite “undemocratic” to say the least.
Voter disenfranchisement on a GRAND scale!
Hey Brucie, speaking of things that are on a grand scale, can you please explain the rationale for the boutique hotel farce and how it came to be 2.5 time denser than the Transportation Center Specific Plan allows?
Any vote for you was a self-disenfranchisement. You have accomplished exactly nothing in 14 years. You could have used your prominence to improve the culture of incompetence, but you seem to have been very happy about it. Not a peep in 14 years.
It’s called Water Board stipend.
Whitaker and Flory both believe that the bureaucracy is the “heart” of the City.
So, Sean, do you recommend at-large voting for cities like Chicago and Los Angeles?
Kitty is a dumpster fire. Act your age lady and enjoy retirement! No one wants to see a 70 year old lying about her “new” ideas to fix Fullerton. Not sure she is or isn’t a Zahra zombie, but she sure smells like one.
Not looking good. If somebody else was going to run we would have heard about it by now.
But maybe Tony Castro will pop up like he did last time courtesy of Ada Briceno and the OC Dems.
I detect irony.
Whitiker also works for the city and is a calpers receipient fyi
True. He was a state employee for three years. Before that he was enrolled in OCERS.
I don’t know if Councilmen get CalPERS credit but he isn’t an “employee.”
Puff, puff, PASS the sales tax to pay for my pension!
I thought Jesus Silva was going to challenge Dunlap in the 2nd.
Looks like the 4th is what it is, about as appealing as Trump vs. Biden.
On Being a Fullerton Voter
A ballot in hand
choices make his stomach sick
no hope for future
When did Jaba the Hutt get new Ray Bans? I see he grew his hair out as well.
Jabba the Hutt was one of the galaxy’s most powerful gangsters, with far-reaching influence in both politics and the criminal underworld. Sounds like our Kitty Kat. Unless we can get a Princess Leia to choke her with a chain.
Didn’t Jabba the Hutt once say he wanted to make the Imperial Stormtroopers a great police force, just like they were before July 5, 2011?
Jabba has never been afraid to use violence and deadly force to instill fear and to intimidate and control citizens. The FPD uses the same playbook Jabba uses.
Jabba won neechee kochba mu shanee wy tonny wya uska. Translation: Kitty Jaramillo AKA Vivian AKA Jabba the Hutt is fugly and old. Two combinations that are timelessly vomit inducing.
Can’t wait to see Kitty Jabba use her nasty tongue to lick Dunlap’s face!
I’ve been looking for people who want to run; unfortunately, no one seems to want to have to deal with the mess of the Council.
You mean the mess of Charles and Zahra.
No, the mess of all the Council. I have disdain for all the Councilmembers currently – for different reasons, but I would support voting out Zahra and Charles just as much as Jung and Dunlap.
I feel your pain.
Anyone who votes for a budget deficit, or for sales tax to cover their inability to properly budget, is not a friend of this City. Anyone who wants to throw more money into city executive salaries while regular city workers make squat is no friend of this City.
I tried to talk Ferguson into it and he laughed at me.