Following the resignation of Councilmember Jose Trinidad Castañeda in late May, Buena Park will hold a special election in November to fill the vacant seat.
In a special meeting on Thursday, May 30, the City Council unanimously supported holding a special election consolidated with the 2024 presidential election on Nov. 5, city clerk Adria Jimenez said.
That means the vacant seat in District 2, which Castañeda was elected to serve, will be left unfilled until the results of the November election are certified.
The person elected will serve for the remainder of the term expiring in December 2026.
Castañeda, who stepped down from his post on Thursday, May 23 citing health concerns, said he may run again for his now-vacant seat in November.
“I still have plenty of unfinished city business to see through and complete,” Castañeda said. “I would hope for the privilege of earning District 2 voters’ trust and confidence to finish out my term either this November or at a later time following my health recovery.”
The Council initially split 2-2 between calling for a special election and appointing someone to fill the vacancy until the November election. Mayor Susan Sonne and Councilmember Connor Traut voiced support for an appointment while Councilmembers Art Brown and Joyce Ahn favored holding a special election.
Leaving the seat vacant until December — Dec. 13 is the deadline for the Secretary of State to certify election results — is “far too long” for residents of District 2 to go unrepresented on the Council, Traut said.
Sonne voiced concern about the lack of a tiebreaker on the dais for when the Council might potentially deadlock on an issue.
“If the vote comes out the way we’re talking right now, it will be a tie. Any other things that we have to consider between now and December could possibly be a tie,” she said. “I think that does a disservice to the entire community of not having the sufficient number of people to ensure that we come to a definitive answer on these things that are placed before us.”
But Ahn and Brown argued that the residents of District 2 should decide who represents them. Appointing someone to a seat on the Council is not the right thing to do, Brown said, because it gives that person an unfair advantage and almost guarantees they would win the election come November.
“I think we should wait until the election to have the people elect the person they want,” he said.
Ahn added there aren’t any urgent items related to District 2 that the Council needs to decide on.
City staff will return with the resolutions calling for a special election at the next regularly scheduled council meeting on Tuesday, June 11.
