By Dan Israeli
The referendum, written by Council Vice President Robert Tepper, was put on the ballot by a 3-2 council vote this spring. According to early unofficial tallies from the board of elections, there were 2,052 votes against adopting an elected mayor, compared to 1,624 votes in favor.
In the end, the special ballot didn't seem to have much of an effect on voter turnout, as polling totals across the city's 24 districts were relatively low. The proposition also didn't seem to garner any interest at either the Republican or Democratic headquarters in Long Beach, where volunteer vote counters didn't even bother to tabulate the proposition's results.
Specifically, the proposal intended to turn the duties of the city manager over to an elected mayor, which Long Beach has not had since 1947. There were several public meetings on the subject leading up to Election Day, where politicians expressed their opposing views on whether a mayor is good for Long Beach.
Over at the Republican headquarters on election night, the winning trio of Tom Sofield Jr., Mona Goodman and John McLaughlin all spoke out on the mayoral proposition. According to Sofield, the proposal was voted down by the public because it wasn't put forward in a proper manner.
"I was critical of the way it was put fourth, so I am not surprised it was shot down," Sofield said. "At the same time, people are afraid of political corruption and adding another layer of government. People are worried about putting too much power in one person's hands."
Goodman said she thought the proposition was put up this election to distract voters from what the real issues are.
"Personally, I'm not in favor of a mayor for a few different reasons," she said. "I'm proud that the voters saw through what was a very flawed referendum. You don't in a moment decide you're going to change the entire form of city's government."
First time elected official McLaughlin said he needed more explanation before he would consider such a serious change. Republican Chairman Jim Moriarty said that a mayor is certainly an issue that should be considered, but only with public input and a charter committee.
Over on the Democratic Party side, Tepper said he proposed the referendum because he saw it as the public's right to vote on the decision.
However, Democratic City Council President Leonard Remo openly opposed the proposal, adding that he voted yes on the referendum in order to put the matter before the public. Democratic Councilwoman Denise Tangney has remained mum on whether she supported the change.
This isn't the first time Long Beach presented a mayoral referendum to the voters, according to city historian Roberta Fiore. In March of 1965, the all Democratic City Council put a similar proposition up for vote in a special spring election. That resulted in a 4,384 to 3,290 vote against adopting a mayor.
That year was a healthy voter turnout, according to Fiore, who was correct in predicting that the same would not be said for this year.
"I have such mixed emotions, but my feeling is that this will be a very light turnout," Fiore said early on Election Day. "I am convinced the public is extremely apathetic on this issue."
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