Lake Elsinore To Fill City Council Vacancy By Appointment

The city of Lake Elsinore is now accepting applications to fill the District 4 council seat vacated earlier this month by newly-elected Assemblymember Natasha Johnson.

The council was presented with two options for filling the vacant council seat. The first option was to fill the seat by appointment.

“The application period would run from September 24 to October 7, with review and possible interviews by an appointment committee, and then the earliest potential appointment coming back to the city council on October 14,” City Clerk Candice Alvarez said. “The appointment would last until [the] November 2026 election, at which point voters would elect a successor to complete the remainder of the term through November 2028.”

The other option was for the council to hold a special election to be held next June to fill the seat for the remainder of the term at a cost of roughly $32,000 to the city.

“Appointing a new person or electing a new person is certainly a time to pause and reflect and certainly consider these options that are in front of us,” Councilmember Steve Manos said. “Seeing that the cost that’s associated with the election process is something that’s not budgeted, and certainly could turn into something that is something of a distraction from council business and from the business of the people, I would certainly recommend that we consider filling the vacancy by appointment.”

However, Councilmember Tim Sheridan said he would prefer an election, even though it would cost the city thousands of dollars and leave the seat unfilled until the special election could be held.

“We, as a body, in my view, cannot substitute our judgment for the judgment of the people in the district that would elect a council member,” he said. “Moreover, if we select someone, it gives them an advantage. Going forward, they have the advantage of an incumbency, and that carries a lot of weight when you go out and run for re-election.”

Mayor Pro Tem Robert “Bob” Magee said that he could see both points made by his fellow council members, but ultimately said he would prefer if the council at least attempted to find a suitable appointment to fill the seat.

“I think that we need to give the application process a chance and allow two of the members up here to come back with a recommendation, either supporting a candidate or supporting an open election,” he said. “What I would ask of the public is that if you have a favorite candidate, please share the positive aspects of that individual with us. We don’t need any negativity.”

And though the council was divided on how best to handle the vacancy, they all agreed that they didn’t want any negativity in the process.

“What I don’t want is a messy thing, and so if it looks like it’s going to get messy, June 2 will be our date,” Mayor Brian Tisdale said. “We are a unified council, and I don’t want anything negative to come between us. 

“We don’t always think the same or vote the same, but we are unified, and because we’re unified, our city, over the last few years, has done amazing things, and we want to keep that moving forward,” he continued before calling for a motion.

Ultimately, the council ended up voting 3-1 to appoint a person to fill the vacancy until the November 2026 election, with Sheridan opposed, and unanimously selected Tisdale and Magee to serve on the subcommittee.

Those interested in applying for the vacancy have until October 7 at 5 p.m. to file their completed applications to the city clerk’s office. In order to be eligible, applicants must be at least 18 years of age, reside in District 4 and be a registered voter in the city of Lake Elsinore.

Applications must also include a nomination form with signatures from at least 20 registered voters residing in District 4. 

More information can be found here on the city’s website.