In a strange twist to local politics, men were elected to fill fourteen city council seats and all three city-wide positions in Los Angeles. One seat was left unoccupied after the May municipal elections. In the primary to replace Councilmember Tony Cardenas, who was elected to the U.S. Congress, no one received a majority of the vote. Therefore, a run-off was held between the top two candidates, Cindy Montañez and Nury Martinez.
Though I've never lived in that city council district, I went to Van Nuys High School, which is located within its boundaries. News reports leading up to the special election last week, noted the odd fact that regardless of who won the election, the new council member would be the only female officeholder in the city. Both campaigns used NationBuilder as part of their campaign organizing efforts.
While she finished second in the primary, Nury Martinez won the election by 9.69% with 969 more votes than Cindy Montañez. Many observers felt voter fatigue kept turnout low (only 11% of registered voters cast ballots) and the Martinez campaign was praised for having a stronger ground campaign. Congratulations to both candidates for their historic campaign!
Further Reading:
Low turnout played role in Nury Martinez's L.A. council seat win, by Catherine Saillant, Los Angeles Times
Nury Martinez triumphs in L.A. Council District 6 special election, by Dakota Smith, Los Angeles Daily News
City of Los Angeles City Council District 6 special election runoff official election results (pdf)
