Since incorporation of Encinitas in 1986 the positions of Mayor and Deputy Mayor have been held by a member of the City Council, selected each December by a majority vote of their peers on the City Council to serve for the next year.
This is not an unusual method for new cities to select their Mayor and Deputy Mayor; However, over the years many attempts at changing the system have been proposed, but none have succeeded in garnering a majority vote.
At the Special City Council meeting held on December 13, 2011 to select Mayor and deputy Mayor to serve for 2012, it was clear that a majority of the City Council once again wanted to explore a different approach, including a more “criteria” based process to determine who would hold these positions.
Encinitas is a General Law City, and while that designation precludes a “strong Mayor” system as currently in use in the City of San Diego, it doesn’t preclude Encinitas having a directly elected Mayor. This is what occurs in the General Law Cities of Lemon Grove and Poway, just by way of example.
In fact, of the 18 incorporated cities in San Diego County, 15 have directly elected Mayors, with only Del Mar, Solana Beach, and Encinitas retaining some form of annual selection process.
I am pleased to report that on Wednesday, February 15th the Encinitas City Council voted 3-2 to change the Mayoral selection process.
For the first time in Encinitas’ history, the voters will have a real say in who serves as Mayor, and the whole turn-taking stuff is over.
“The person serving on the City Council who received the most votes in their election to the Encinitas City Council shall serve as Mayor the final two years of their 4 year term in office.” The Mayor will name their Deputy Mayor.
No more annual rotation, no more personality driven politics each December. The voters will choose by virtue of the vote count and there will be a rational and predictable Mayoral determination with 2 year terms.
Jerome Stocks
Proud to be the last “selected” Mayor of Encinitas.
Comments 13
Shouldn’t that be “Proud to be the last selected Mayor of Encinitas after manipulating the process to exclude the worthy?” The city is onto you Jerome, and I think the county is as well. The only personality driving politics in the city is yours.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dr7AtjQzufk&context=C34e1da6ADOEgsToPDskIW7gvE3EVfyUjwGMnJl5wz
The comment above was posted using the name of another member of the Encinitas City Council. The use of pseudonyms is allowed on this site, but COME NOW, it should be common sense that does NOT include the use of someone else’s real name so as to give the false impression a comment was posted them. COMMON SENSE. Next time, this person will be banned from commenting at all.
I CAN BE MAYOR!!!
I successfully got three members of the City Council to allow the voters to have a direct say regarding who is our Mayor.
I love that the haters are bent out of shape because they’re not in charge, and they don’t think they can win straight-up going forward with the others in charge.
“For the first time in ENCINITAS history, the voters will have a real say in who serves as Mayor, and the whole turn-taking stuff is over.”
Hey hater, we believe in letting the voters decide.
Mr. Stocks: why are people who might have a different point of view referred to as “haters.” You proudly and frequently remind us that you are the Mayor of Encinitas, and you are speaking to the community. Is this really appropriate behavior by an elected official? Such disdain for dissenters is frightening.
The truth is, there was no debate about the proposal approved by the Council majority. There was no staff analysis to support this approach. No other city in our region uses the approach Mr. Stocks presented seemingly out of nowhere after a long and meandering discussion of other approaches to mayoral selection. If someone objects to the outcome, why does Mayor Stocks feel compelled to refer to the person as “hey hater?” This kind of juvenile name calling is unbecoming of a public official, and not how I want the mayor of my city to behave. We need change on the Encinitas City Council! Fortunately, Mr. Stocks will have to stand before the voters in November, and I predict the voters will have a real say!
Uhhh, because every time he posts something, however non-controversal, he gets 1 or 2 angry responses like yours? The voters keep backing Jerome Stocks at election time. Really bothers you, huh ?
Well gosh Mr. or Ms. or Mrs. “Looking for Change”… If that is your real name, and somehow I doubt it…
You’re “looking for change”??? Great, I helped provide it.
Why are you so uptight about allowing the voters to have a direct say in who becomes the mayor? I believe the people should decide.
The system adopted by the Encinitas City Council is the same one the city of Escondido used to transition from a selected mayor to an elected mayor.
Sorry if you’re not a student of history and not so good at research…
My prediction is that regardless of what the voters think of me in November (and I’ve been counted out in three out of three successful elections) my prediction is that after the next, or maybe two election cycles we’ll have three out of I’ve Council Members who will by formula not be Mayor. At that point we’ll likely have three of five who will vote in favor of directly electing the mayor.
“It’s my turn” is now formally relegated to the sand box and the swing set. But eliminated from city hall.
Sounds like more bullying to me. You didn’t address your need to call people names like “hater.”
Your scheme ensures that whoever gets elected in November 2012 BY THE VOTERS has no chance of being Mayor for at least another 2 years, and ensures that your colleague, Teresa Barth, also elected BY THE VOTERS, cannot be mayor even if a new majority is seated after the next election. Clever move, but not really very representative. When Kristin Gaspar was elected, she was not elected Mayor by the voters. Many who voted for her 2 years ago, when she was a relative unknown, may have second thoughts by now. What if she’s a lone minority on the Council after the next election? Should she really be mayor for 2 years with no voter input? If you want a direct election of mayor, put that on the agenda, have the staff do a real analysis and bring forth a proposal for public consideration.
Jerome, people are uptight because they know you only want voters to have a say when you can dictate the process and hand pick the succession. If that weren’t true, then you would have no problem with Teresa getting a turn.
The majority is now watching your every move, and since dissent is actually a part of our democratic process (I know this comes as a surprise), I wouldn’t start having that crown made just yet…
Jerome, my question is would you have done this at this time had Teresa Barth received the most votes in the last election?
Dear Knave: yes
Dear Stan: I have no ability to “dictate the process” in terms of who will be the top vote getter in the future, so you premise is logically flawed, but your perspective is obvious.
Dear Change: Kristin Gaspar will make a great Mayor. And sometimes when the selection of Mayor is in the hands of the voter instead of a City Council majority the Mayor must serve in the minority of the City Council, as with Mayor Jim Wood in Oceanside. That’s life.
How’d that mayoral rotation thing work out for you, Mr. Stocks? Seems like even the rest of the Council didn’t support your proposal. Any idea why?