LONG BEACH >> Voters living in five City Council districts had a rare opportunity Tuesday to elect five freshman council members — no incumbents stood for re-election in this campaign cycle.
In one of the most competitive races — the contest to represent the city’s 5th Council District — Los Angeles County budget manager Stacy Mungo had the advantage with mail-in ballots and all 44 precincts reporting shortly before 2 a.m. Wednesday.
“I am just so thankful for the numbers of volunteers that have believed in the clean, kind and thorough campaign that we ran,” she said in an interview Tuesday night. “We have really made an effort to reach every voter.”
Mungo had 37.7 percent of the vote, and her closest follower is Carl Kemp, the owner of a public relations firm and former lobbyist, who has 31.4 percent of the vote.
Mungo said that if she wins the possible runoff election between herself and Kemp, her priority would be to help the city stave off a looming deficit.
“We need to have someone who is focused on fiscal security,” she said.
The other candidates in the race were businessman Joe Luyben and Millikan High School teacher Tom Sutfin. Luyben won 23.3 percent of the vote and Sutfin claimed 7.5 percent of the vote.
The 5th District, currently represented by mayoral hopeful Gerrie Schipske, runs from the Long Beach Airport area on its western end toward El Dorado Park and surrounding neighborhoods on its east side.
The top two finishers in each race will compete in the runoff election.
District 1
Lena Gonzalez, a staffer for current councilman Robert Garcia, led the tally in early returns, with minister Misi Tagaloa in second place.
Gonzalez had 45.5 percent of the tallied votes. Tagaloa, who serves at Second Samoan Congregational United Church of Christ, had 30.5 percent of the vote.
The other candidates in the race are Ricardo Linarez, who until recently worked in the office of 9th District Councilman Steven Neal, and nonprofit executive Pilar Pinel. Linarez and Pinel respectively claimed 16.1 percent and 7.9 percent of ballots as of 2 a.m.
The 1st District spans the Los Angeles River, including industrial land near the Port of Long Beach and extending as far east to include part of the eclectic East Village Arts District. The district also includes north downtown areas, and all four candidates said a pressing need for the district is to improve streets and other city services in the less-affluent areas in the northern part of downtown.
District 3
Results from all 36 precincts show Suzie Price, a prosecutor for the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, winning the election outright. Price holds the advantage with 54.9 percent of mail-in ballots and, if that lead holds, would avoid a runoff on June 3.
Commercial real estate executive Jack Rosenberg is in second place with 13.1 percent of the vote. Nonprofit leader Jim Lewis is in third place with 11.5 percent of counted ballots. He is followed by commercial real estate broker Stephen C. Bello, who has 10.7 percent of the vote, and substitute teacher Martha Flores-Gibson with 9.8 percent of the vote.
Long Beach’s 3rd District includes its southeastern area, including the wealthy areas of Naples Island and Belmont Shore. Five candidates entered the race to succeed outgoing Councilman Gary DeLong, one of the more fiscally conservative members of the council.
District 7
Long Beach City College trustee Roberto Uranga has the advantage with 50.2 percent of the vote, which is close to the majority needed to avoid a runoff.
Joan Greenwood, a senior project manager for an environmental consultant firm, is in second place with 24.5 percent of the vote. Teer Strickland, an employee of the state Board of Equalization, has 18.6 percent of the vote, and retired teacher Lee Chauser has 6.6 percent of the vote in initial reporting.
The district is one of the city’s most diverse and straddles two sides of the Los Angeles River spanning working class, industrial areas on its western end and more affluent communities on its eastern end.
It is currently represented by Councilman James Johnson, who chose to run for city attorney instead of seeking re-election.
District 9
Rex Richardson, chief of staff to current Councilman Steven Neal, appeared to be well on his way to victory in the North Long Beach district, with 72.4 percent of the vote.
Richardson ran against activist Ben Daugherty, who had 27.6 percent of the vote.
Daugherty said he could bring a fresh voice to the district, whereas Richardson, who worked as a political and community coordinator for Service Employees International Union Local 721 before joining Neal’s office, said he can blend experience at the city level with grass-roots appeal.
Contact Andrew Edwards at 562-499-1305.
