Cathedral City gears up for first district-based elections
Election season is underway in Cathedral City with voters deciding who their next leaders will be in the city. A big change, the move to a district based city council election.
Campaign signs are posted up on Pamela Diamond’s street. She’s a potential voter who’s making sure her voice is heard for the city council race.
“If I am going to complain or make a statement about something, I should be able to stand up and do something about it,” she said.
She’s been living in the city for decades, living in the Ramon tract and seeing it’s growth.
“When I moved here, there were almost no houses, now of course, there’s a lot,” she said.
Her vote counts differently this time as Diamond’s neighborhood is now part of District 4 in Cathedral City. It’s part of a new electoral process where each seat on the city council will be representing a district. City staff says a more localized campaign for candidates could get more people involved.
“You have a smaller area that you actually represent and because of doing that, you might get more people that are looking to run for a particular district,” Chris Parman, communications manager for the city of Cathedral City, said.
A total of five district are made in the city, split evenly with are 11,000 people being represented each. The council seats for district three, four and five are up for election and a total of eight candidates are running with Councilman Mark Carnevale, the only incumbent in the ballot.
Each of the eight candidates were asked about their thoughts on the district-based format of the election. Six of the candidates responded by deadline, all saying they thought it was a positive move forward for the city, by getting a city council that’s reflective of the population. Voter Suzy Bollard says she appreciates the sense of familiarity.
“I like the idea of having somebody who lives right near me who has the interest of our neighborhood. I think that’s much better than what it used to be,” she said.
For Diamond, having someone from the community experience life is one of the key factors she find in an effective leader.
“It’s something you can’t learn from a book or read up on the internet. It’s something you live. It makes a better experience,” she said.
Voters will have plenty of choices to make their decision at the ballot box.
A city treasurer will also be chosen in an at-large election. The incumbent Henry Chan is running unopposed.
Here are the responses by the six candidates that responded to the question regarding their thoughts abut the move to district-based elections.
Rick Saldivar: “I love that our city has gone into districts. I believe you best have a pulse on the challenges and success of your neighborhood when you live in it. I love that voters will have a councilman who basically will be present at all times, whether it be at a friends bbq down the street, dropping off kids at school, or simply riding bikes around city blocks. As to the demographics, I am that very demographic that Cathedral City is; I’m 44 years old, raising 3 boys 15, 14 and a 4-year-old. I’m a working man and even in the income bracket. So I know what it will take to fairly represent our district. I’m a Pastor and truly have a heart for the community.”
Councilman Mark Carnevale: “Districts provide voters with strong constituency representation because each voter has a single district representative. I believe a single-member represented districtwill improve service to our neighborhoods by providing voters with an easily identifiable council member, who can be held accountable and responsible, and either will or won’t be re-elected in the next election. I personally was excited when Shenkman & Hughes, a Malibu law firm, threatened to sue Cathedral City if the city didn’t adopt a by-district election system. The firm felt that our large Latino community was not being fairly represented, and I agree that this new system gives the entire city an equal-voting playing field. It is important to remember that just because we are divided into five districts, all council members must work together as one unit to continue the recent progress the current council has made in Cathedral City. I pledge that I will continue to serve all Cathedral City residents equally, if I am re-elected to represent District 3.”
Sergio Espericueta: “I consider that the election by district specifically district 4 motivated more residents to participate as candidates and I hope more voting turnout. I think this is a good opportunity as an elected council member to be the contact of the residents who live within my district and share their concerns with the other council members to find a solution.”
Raymond Gregory: “I believe district elections will improve the overall wellbeing of the city by making sure all residents and businesses have a voice and have a person who lives in their area and is familiar with their issues to whom they can go for assistance. Cathedral City District 5 is an ethnically diverse area made up of all types of families, working people, retirees, and seniors. The candidates are both long-time residents, working people, with public service backgrounds and college educations. So yes, at least for our district, the candidates are good examples of the demographics they represent.”
Laura Ahmed: “I believe the direction the city is going in with voting districts is a positive step. Each candidate knows their area well, and can bring a better perspective to the when council. Districting also reflects the varied populations in each district.”
John Rivera: “I think we’ve all seen in recent years how the makeup of our City Council including the Mayor has been diverse, inclusive and well representative of our citizens, so it’s fair to say our City’s been on the right track. Now that we have districts we’re moving to the next step which is to ensure that all neighborhoods within our city has fair representation and that no single segment of the city has a disproportionate advantage.”
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