Modesto Bee to host debate between special election candidates
“This is a waste of time, to be honest,” the mayor said in frustration near the end of a divisive city council argument a few days ago.
Can you guess which city?
I know, I know — words of exasperation like that might have been uttered anywhere and at any level of government these days, when polarization has pushed people far apart and politics seem more important than compromise.
Let me give you some hints. The city in question is in Stanislaus County, and council members were fighting over the annual budget. After a long squabble, two different motions failed, both on 2-2 split votes, and ultimately nothing was accomplished.
Give yourself a gold star if you guessed “Ceres.” It’s the only Stanislaus city in the middle of a special election campaign to fill a vacancy — because the four sitting council members, after much struggle and strife in February in March, hopelessly deadlocked on the question of appointing a fifth.
Things haven’t ground to a halt in Ceres. The budget dispute will become moot in a couple of weeks or so, when the city receives $5.8 million in COVID-19 federal relief money, in effect erasing the $1.6 million deficit that caused the latest rift on the council. Ceres expects to get another $5.8 million again next year.
Meanwhile, leaders put themselves in a precarious position by failing to pass a budget as required by law before July 1. But they called a special meeting a couple of days later to adopt what’s called a continuing resolution, allowing the city to pay bills and keep business going for the time being.
How to end Ceres dysfunction
A fifth council member, of course, would have broken the tie and avoided this grief. So we look forward to a full panel in Ceres when the special election concludes Aug. 31.
Our Modesto Bee Editorial Board will interview the three candidates — Laurie Smith, Connie Vasquez and Jim Casey — together in a couple of weeks, and a video of the debate should post at modbee.com for all to see by July 22. Such back-and-forth helps viewers get to know candidates and their views on important topics.
We might even learn something about how they perform under pressure, which doesn’t seem lacking in Ceres, Modesto’s neighbor to the south. Each candidate seeks to represent northwest Ceres’ District 1, a seat vacated when former councilman Channce Condit was elected in November to the county Board of Supervisors.
The Bee’s endorsement will follow soon after. Ballots will be sent to voters Aug. 2 and must be returned by Aug. 31.
The Ceres City Council could be back to full strength by its Sept. 20 meeting. At that point, the quarreling might not come to end, but thankfully, the 2-2 ties will.
This story was originally published July 7, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
