Bellflower Poised to Appoint Santa Ines, Dunton to Council, Avoid Cost of Uncontested Elections

Only one candidate qualified in Districts 3 and 5; City Council will consider appointments Aug. 19 rather than spend money placing uncontested races on the November ballot.

LCCN Staff Report

BELLFLOWER — The Bellflower City Council is poised to appoint Sonny R. Santa Ines and Ray Dunton to two City Council seats after each emerged as the only qualified candidate in their respective districts, a move that would eliminate the cost of conducting two uncontested elections in November.

The nomination period for the Nov. 3 General Municipal Election closed Aug. 7 at 5 p.m., with Santa Ines the sole qualified candidate for Council District 3 and Dunton the only qualified candidate for Council District 5.

The City Council will hold a special meeting Wednesday, Aug. 19, at 9 a.m. to consider appointing the two candidates rather than placing the uncontested races before voters.

California Elections Code Section 10229 permits cities to make such appointments when the number of qualified candidates does not exceed the number of offices to be filled.

If the council appoints Santa Ines and Dunton, the District 3 and District 5 elections will be canceled, avoiding the expense associated with placing the two contests on the ballot and conducting elections in which voters have only one candidate from which to choose.

The appointments would not shorten or otherwise alter the terms. Under state law, a person appointed under these circumstances qualifies, takes office and serves exactly as if elected in the municipal election.

Other Bellflower races scheduled for the Nov. 3 ballot would proceed as planned.

The council has little time to make the decision. Under state election law, appointments must be made by Aug. 20, the 75th day before the election. If the council does not make the appointments by that deadline, elections for Districts 3 and 5 must be held.

Once an appointment is made, the City Clerk also may not accept a subsequent statement of write-in candidacy for that office.

The situation is not the result of candidates dropping out after a competitive campaign. When Bellflower’s nomination period closed, Santa Ines and Dunton were the only qualified candidates for their respective seats, leaving neither with an opponent.

The Aug. 19 action would therefore allow the city to seat the only candidates who qualified while avoiding the additional public expense of conducting two uncontested council elections.