The Coronado City Council will try to fill its empty seat by appointment during a January meeting, its members decided in its first act as a newly installed council.
The vacancy arose when John Duncan won the race for mayor in November, while midway through his four-year term as city council member. The council could have opted to fill the seat via appointment or special election.
City Councilmember Carrie Downey voted against appointment, with the rest of the council voting in favor.
The city will open applications to interested Coronado residents, who will have until 5 p.m. Jan. 13 to submit a three-page packet outlining their interest and qualifications. Then, at the council’s Jan. 21 meeting, applicants will speak, public comment will be heard, and the council will make a decision.
A quick pace accomplishes two things: First, in the case that the four-person council cannot reach consensus, there would still be time for the council to instead call a special election. By law, the council must act within 60 days of the vacancy, setting the deadline at Feb. 15.
Second, it would minimize the amount of time a seat remained empty on the council, which currently has four members and is primed for split votes. Council members worried that the time it would take to hold a special election would substantially deplete the remaining two years of Duncan’s term.
Council Member Amy Steward said she was concerned that having a special election – and, by extension, leaving a seat on the council vacant for at least six months – would render the current council ineffective.
“I don’t know about you all, but I don’t really want to sit here every night until midnight until we have a three-one vote,” Steward said. “I really believe in making an appointment rather than waiting.”
Because an election must be held at least 114 days from when it is called, the earliest the city could hold a special election is May 6, 2025, although the deadline to call it is Jan. 12. The next available dates would be Aug. 26 or Nov. 4. The first two options would be mail-in only, while Nov. 4 would open the possibility for in-person voting.
The cost of a special election is estimated at between $275,000 and $450,000.
The election results would be certified within a maximum of 30 days, and the winner could be sworn in at the next regular meeting of the City Council, or during a special meeting. Duncan agreed that the timeline was too long, and also questioned if candidates could campaign effectively on such a tight schedule.
Budget was also taken into consideration.
“When I look at it from the aspect of the cost,” said Council Member Mark Fleming, “while we may be able to fit it within our city budget, to me, that doesn’t justify spending that many taxpayer dollars on a special election. Beyond that, I believe that the citizens of Coronado are tired of the election process and and really don’t want to go through another election.”
Duncan said the cost of the election could be put toward stormwater drainage projects – a chief concern in the city after last winter’s flooding – and pointed out that the cost could equate to almost half of what the city invests into community grants for nonprofits.
Downey, however, disagreed, and said the city owed it to its citizens to ask who they preferred.
“Do we have, the four of us, some crystal ball that says we know what the city of Coronado wants?” she asked. “I don’t think we do.”
During public comment, and indeed, during public discourse leading up to the meeting, some community members suggested that Laura Wilkinson Sinton, who came in third in this year’s race for two open City Council seats, be appointed. She lost to Council Member Amy Steward by 80 votes, with Fleming taking first place overall.
Six members of the public spoke in favor of appointment, with two of them suggesting Wilkinson Sinton (one of them being her husband). One in favor of appointment said she did not support Wilkinson Sinton as a choice. Three people spoke in favor of a special election. Two petitions supporting Wilkinson Sinton have tallied 117 and 140 signatures at time of publication (although it is difficult to discern if some people signed both petitions, and if so, how many).
But Downey questioned if appointing the third place winner be representative of citizens’ true wishes, and pointed out that, even for an appointed council member, being an incumbent candidate in an upcoming race carries weight.
“To suggest we have any idea what Coronado wants?” she said. “I don’t think I do, and I want to give the people that chance to express their will and to have an open election. I want to hear what you all have to say, but I would need to hear some convincing why we shouldn’t let the people choose themselves.”
Duncan, however, argued that elected seats are commonly filled by appointment when necessary, pointing out Calif. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s appointments of Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla to the U.S. Senate as examples.
“On the outside agencies I sit on, I’m regularly sitting next to an appointed council member,” Duncan said. “It’s extraordinarily common.”
The city anticipates having information about the application published on its website this week. Candidates will be asked for a one-page personal statement and two-page resume.
