With three Redondo Beach City Council seats up for grabs alongside that of the Mayor, the potential existed for a complete sweep by candidates aligned with Mayor-elect Bill Brand.
However, the victory of John Gran in District 4 balanced out Todd Loewenstein’s District 2 win. Now, the result of a possible runoff election between District 1 incumbent Martha Barbee and Nils Nehrenheim may have the capacity to neuter Brand’s veto power.
Loewenstein, a former member of the Redondo Beach School Board, won handily in his first City Council race against Planning Commissioner Doug Rodriguez, 63 percent to 37 percent.
Early tallies of vote-by-mail ballots put Loewenstein ahead early, indicating that receiving Brand’s blessing for succession in District 2 may have made the difference.
Rodriguez, headquartered at the Slip Bar on the International Boardwalk, seemed anxious as he kept his spirits up, waiting for poll results to roll in.
“Only time will tell,” Rodriguez said. “But ultimately, it’s up to the people.”
Though the amount of yard signs he distributed and the response he got from door knocking bouyed his confidence, Rodriguez was ultimately disappointed as Loewenstein’s lead held.
“Political winds have changed, and I’m ready to work with people,” Loewenstein said after final results came in. “I think Measure C helped all of us and showed that quality of life is on everyone’s minds…there are lots of ways forward to build a waterfront that will make residents proud.”
John Gran, endorsed by incumbent Mayor Steve Aspel, won outright in District 4, besting his nearest competitor, Suzy Royds, 54.2 percent to 36.45 percent. Third-place Adam Wachter took 9.35 percent of the vote.
“Hard work pays off,” Gran said, noting that he’d been knocking on doors in North Redondo until the day before the election. “I’m going to go and do what the people ask me to do, which is start moving forward…I’m excited to work with [Bill Brand] and make sure that we’re pushing Redondo Beach forward. I’m going to hold him to his word.”
Royds was unavailable for comment on Tuesday night and the following morning. Wachter, though, was contemplative.
“I’m disappointed in my performance,” Wachter said. “It’s hard to compete against the PAC money from CenterCal and the Chamber of Commerce, and I think if you removed those, results would have perhaps been different.”
He is not deterred though, planning to continue working toward issues including city finances and public safety infrastructure.
“If [the council] can use me for a specific issue, I’m happy to work with them,” Wachter said. “The city’s got to move forward.”
The key now lays in District 1, where Nehrenheim ended election night with a 49.31 percent of the vote, just shy of a 50 percent-plus-one-vote victory. If that result holds, Nehrenheim will be placed against appointed incumbent Martha Barbee, holding 40.47 percent of the vote.
Late vote-by-mail and provisional ballots may end up tipping the scales, however.
“I’m confident…I felt I was running against [Steve Aspel], not Martha Barbee, and I feel it’s extremely impressive to have the votes I do,” Nehrenheim said. “But we’ve kept it clean in the one-on-one race, and I hope we can keep that up moving forward.”
The 10.22 percent difference was held by third-place finisher Rolf Strutzenberg.
“[Rolf’s] definitely been taking votes from me,” Barbee said. “I’m not happy about the possibility of a runoff…no one wants to drag this thing out two more months. But right now, we’re just going to have to wait and see.”
This race is critical for Council balance. Nehrenheim has shown himself to be aligned with Brand, particularly among development issues. Barbee’s voting record shows that she has leaned in favor of proposed development, but that she is willing to make moves in response to constituents.
The result of the race may determine the strength of Brand’s veto power. Council votes of 3-2, which are likely with Nehrenheim’s election, could be vetoed by Brand. Votes of 4-1, likely under a Barbee victory, may not be vetoed under the City Charter.
“When I do the math, [Nils] would need 36 votes without Rolf or I getting any to get [a majority],” Barbee said. “It’s in the county’s hands now…it could be a week, maybe 10 days before we know the final results.
“I’m just looking at it as a break,” Barbee said. “It’s a way to take a breather before a runoff.”
