The Victorville City Council is at odds over how to fill a vacancy left by the abrupt removal of former city councilwoman Rita Ramirez earlier this month.
Ramirez has been accused of living outside the district for more than a year. On March 2, a majority of the Council agreed and voted for her removal.
The next fight is brewing over who will replace Ramirez — and how. The dais hit a stalemate on March 9 when two members (Councilwoman Elizabeth Becerra and Mayor Debra Jones) voted to appoint a new council member and two others (Mayor Pro Tem Leslie Irving and Councilwoman Blanca Gomez) voted against, preferring a special election instead.
The motion introduced by Becerra would have resulted in interviews of the other top five vote-getters from the November election: former Victorville Mayor Ryan McEachron; activist Kareema Abdul-Khabir; social worker and Navy veteran Ashiko Newman; prior Council candidate Lizet Angulo; and former staffer for 1st District Supervisor Paul Cook, Kimberly Mesen.
The clock is ticking. If a decision is not made before May 1, the seat will remain vacant through the November 2022 election.
Read more at the Victorville Daily Press.