Dan Slater and Brandy Romero pulled ahead Tuesday night in the races for Orange mayor and District 1 councilmember. And, early results showed support for Measures I and J, but lukewarm interest for a charter proposal in Measure K.
Councilmember Arianna Barrios, who runs Communications Lab, a public relations and community outreach firm in Orange’s historic core, is termed out of her District 1 seat and is challenging incumbent Slater for mayor.
Slater has worked as a local residential real estate broker and served on the City Council from 1994 to 2004 before returning to the dais in 2022 as mayor.
“No matter who, what your political affiliation is, I’ve tried to connect with everyone who has wanted to reach out with me who has had a need or problem in the city, and I want to help everybody,” Slater said, shortly after results showed his early lead. “As I’ve said many times, I’ve tried to be a consensus builder. And I think that the citizens have recognized that.”
The mayor of Orange may serve a maximum of three consecutive two-year terms while councilmembers can serve two consecutive four-year terms. Councilmembers are elected in staggered terms.
LIVE ELECTION RESULTS: See a chart of the latest vote counts
With Barrios termed-out, District 1 voters are guaranteed a new representative in either business owner and contractor Ernest Glasgow, real estate agent and Traffic Commission Vice Chair Albert “AJ” Ricci, business owner and Parks Commission Chair Romero and Jonathan St. Clair, a general manager at a local commercial printing company.
District 1, which was formed in 2020 when the city switched from at-large to district elections, includes some of the city’s most notable attractions, such as Chapman University and the Old Towne Historic District.
Sitting District 4 Councilmember Denis Bilodeau was unopposed in his bid for reelection. And with District 6 Councilmember John Gyllenhammer not running for a second term, Army veteran and small business owner Brendon Mueller will take the seat. There was no other candidate who filed for that race.
Mueller serves as chair of the Santiago Creek Commission and a member of the Orange County Transportation Authority Citizens Advisory Committee.
Orange voters saw three measures on the ballot meant to help bolster city coffers, which faces a projected $27.6 million deficit fueled by rising costs against scant revenue increases, city staffers have said.
Early results saw voters take warmly to Measure I, a one-cent local sales tax with a 13-year lifespan and an independent oversight committee, and Measure J, a 4% increase to the city’s tax on hotel stays for hotels with 11 or more rooms.
But returns showed a lack of support for Measure K, which proposes Orange transition from a general law city to a charter city, a municipality governed by its own charter, or local constitution, with some leeway to dispute state laws.
“I’m very excited about the prospect of I and J,” Slater said. “Orange has been a little bit anemic for the past few years. We weren’t doing economic development. And we found that even being fiscally conservative wasn’t working when costs are rising and income has been flat.”
“So the city has been a little bit anemic and this is the booster shot we needed,” he said.
City staffers projected Measure I to eventually bring approximately $37 million annually to city coffers and Measure J to generate $3 million annually.