Two competing citizen initiatives in National City regarding term limits for elected office holders await validation from the San Diego Registrar of Voters.
City Clerk Mike Dalla said that both parties suporting their respective measures submitted their petitions to his office two weeks ago after gathering more than the 2,248 signatures needed for both measures to qualify for the ballot, upon validation of signatures.
The Registrar of Voters has 30-days days from the time they received the signatures to validate them, Dalla said.
The first potential ballot measure was submitted with 5,580 signatures, which is 3,332 more than the required amount.
That measure proposes eliminating a term limit of three consecutive four-year terms for office of the mayor, and would instead impose term-limits on all elected offices of two-consecutive four-year terms.
The petition states that it is “A measure to repeal the existing-voter approved limit of three consecutive four-year terms upon the office of the mayor, and in its place, impose a limit of two consecutive four-year terms upon the offices of the mayor, city council members, city clerk, and city treasurer.”
If passed by voters it would undo a previous measure that had imposed a term limit for the mayor’s office and place term limits on all elected offices, requiring them to sit out one election cycle before they can run again for the same position.
Victor Barajas, one of the organizers of the petition, said he backed the petition because he would like to see term limits placed across the board, not just for the mayor’ s seat.
“Our initiative applies to all elected officials of National City,” he said. “In our view, this would give voters the most flexibility. I think both the mayor and city council and all elected offices need to be held accountable and I think this initiative does that.”
In 2004, about 70 percent of National City voters approved a measure for term limits on the mayor’s office.
During the 36-year period from 1966 to 2002, only two individuals – Kile Morgan and George Waters— held the mayoral office, both serving four or more consecutive terms.
Ron Morrison in 2004, then a councilman, supported a ballot measure for a term limit on the mayor’s office. Now as the mayor, Morrison’s stance on term limits for the mayor has changed, saying “it’s now a different world.”
Resident Gloria Jean Nieto, who has supported Morrison’s’ political foes in the past, said the petition to reset the mayor’s term limit is just a “power grab” to keep Morrison in office.
“To me it’s unfair, the voters had already voted on a term limit measure in 2004,” she said. “It’s silly to have this (petition). I think it’s crazy. If it goes to the polls in June and Morrison’s group wins he could run (for mayor) in November. It’s ridiculous what he is doing.”
Barajas, who admits he has “a close personal friendship” with Morrison that goes back more than five years, acknowledges that this initiative could find Morrison seeking re-election and possibly serve another eight years as mayor.
Barajas, who says he has some political differences with Morrison, said he volunteered on Morrison’s mayoral campaign in 2014 by helping put out signs and passing out campaign literature.
Barajas said the idea of the initiative was not Morrison’s but that of three small business owners who wanted to “shake things up” at City Hall.
He said Morrison only helped guide them in how to start an initiative but said Morrison had no influence on the initiative.
Dalla said the petition to repeal the term limits for mayor needs to go on the ballot in June or it would not have any affect.
“The (initiative) to repeal would be of no use if it doesn’t go on the ballot in June,” he said.
“Because the existing term limit would be operable and so Mr. Morrison would not be eligible to seek a fourth term because he would have already served his three (consecutive terms).”
Morrison has 26 years in elected office in National City. He has served National City for 14 years as a councilman and has been the mayor the past 12 years.
Under the city’s current system, this is Morrison’s last year in his last term as mayor.
However, if the initiative passes, Morrison said he has not ruled out another mayoral run.
“As I see the political climate here in National City at the moment, and as I see the lack of available talent going for mayor at the moment, I probably would (run for mayor again),” Morrison said.
At this time, Councilwoman Alejandra Sotelo Solis is the only publicly known candidate running for mayor in 2018.
Dalla said a special election could cost taxpayers $50,000 to $70,000, plus additional local costs such as the translation and publication of election materials as well as administrative costs.
A second petition, “A measure to preserve the existing voter-approve term limit of three consecutive four-year terms upon the office of the mayor, to impose a limit of three consecutive four-year terms upon the offices of city council member, city clerk and city treasurer to a lifetime total of six four-year terms in all of those offices combined,” was submitted to the city clerk with 3,369 signatures.
This proposal keeps the existing term limits on the mayor to three consecutive four-year terms and would impose a limit of three consecutive four-year terms on the office of city council member, city clerk, and city treasurer to a lifetime total of six four-year terms in all of those offices combined.
Under this proposal, Morrison would not be allowed to run for the mayoral seat but he would be allowed to run for city council or city treasurer, something he said he would do if the first initiative were to be defeated and the second one were to pass.
“Anything is possible,” Morrison said.
The petitions were submitted to the Registrar Jan. 18.
