Tonight, voters are picking a new majority for Huntington Beach’s City Council, with the option to re-elect a slate of Republican councilmen or choose one of several new candidates for the four available seats on the city council.
As of 1:30 a.m., incumbent Mayor Casey McKeon, Councilmen Pat Burns and Andrew Gruel, and candidate Ben Davis were on track to get a seat on the city council, with Erin Spivey trailing behind Davis by 118 votes.
McKeon, Burns, Gruel and Brian Thienes were all endorsed by the county Republican Party, while Erin Spivey, Taryn Palumbo, Davis and Brenda Glim were all endorsed by the county Democratic Party.
In early returns Spivey and Palumbo were on track to get seats, but dropped out of the top four as more results came in and were replaced by Burns and Gruel.
The election comes four years after a Republican majority swept the 2024 election and initiated a number of controversial legal challenges against the state, arguing for city control over items like elections, housing and zoning.
Noah Biesiada is a Voice of OC reporter. Contact him at nbiesiada@voiceofoc.org.
