Can Libertarian Norm Westwell win a seat on the HB City Council, in his fifth attempt?
Huntington Beach will be a hot zone for local politics in the next election. “Council members Jill Hardy, Cathy Green and Gil Coerper will be termed out next year, while incumbent Joe Carchio is eligible to run for reelection,” according to the Huntington Beach Independent.
In the running for next year are Joe Shaw, a former planning and public works commissioner who aided former Mayor Debbie Cook’s 2008 congressional campaign; Norm Westwell, the president of the Ocean View School District’s board of trustees; John Von Holle, the former president of the city’s Municipal Employees Assn.; Dan Kalmick, a small-business owner and onetime congressional candidate; Planning Commissioners Barbara Delgleize and Fred Speaker; Realtor Bruce Brandt; and first-time challengers Erik Peterson and Bill Rorick.
Joe Shaw is the best of this bunch. “Shaw, who serves on the city’s Charter Review Commission, plans to hold a kickoff fundraiser at Cook’s home Oct. 24. In addition to Cook, supporters listed on his campaign website include City Councilwoman Jill Hardy, former Mayor Connie Boardman and Coast Community College District trustees Jim Moreno and Lorraine Prinsky,” according to Shaw’s website. That fundraiser starts at 5:40. Click here for a map. Click here for details, on Facebook. OJ blogger Vern Nelson will be playing the piano at this event, which is reason enough to stop by!
Shaw is also a longtime blogger. He has his own blog and he also is a founder of the OC Progressive blog – which is the REAL blog for local liberals.
I am told that Delgleize and Speaker are affiliated with Dave Garafolo – these are Republicans. Nuff said.
Dan Kalmick is a good guy and a past Democratic congressional candidate. A small businessman, he has run for the HB City Council before, in 2008.
The other intriguing candidate is Ocean View School Board President Norm Westwell. He used to be known by the nickname “firecracker.” Those days are over. Today he prides himself on being a good politician – he told a Libertarian conference yesterday that while he takes great pride in being a Libertarian he is all about doing what the people want him to do – and not pushing red buttons, which is what he thinks of community activists.
Council members Jill Hardy, Cathy Green and Gil Coerper will be termed out next year, while incumbent Joe Carchio is eligible to run for reelection.
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