Seven are vying for three council seats
Three seats on the La Verne City Council are up for grabs in the June 7 election, with just two incumbents running, guaranteeing a shake-up on the dais.
In total, seven candidates are in the running. The 2022 election represents the first after the city transitioned from at-large to district-based voting. The mayor’s seat will be appointed and rotated among council members on an annual basis.
The District 1 race pits incumbent Muir Davis against former council member Steve Johnson. In District 4, incumbent Tim Hepburn, currently mayor, faces Estella V. Maldonado and Richard Gill, who ran for a seat in 2020. District 3 voters will choose between first-time candidate Joe Gabaldon and Meshal “Kash” Kashifalghita, who ran for Congress in 2020, to replace Council member Robin Carder, elected in 2009, who will be retiring once election results are certified.
Top issues for candidates include bringing back a mayor elected separately from council,
public safety, the incoming L Line light rail and future revenue opportunities.
Here’s a look at the races:
Muir Davis
Serving as a council member since 2017, Davis, 61, is an advocate for improving streets and long-term sustainability of city finances. With the incoming L Line, Davis said he sees potential for growth, but wants to protect the smalltown charm.
“I want to maintain that uniqueness of living that’s due to a large part of the neighborliness of our residents,” Davis said in a phone interview. “But there is also opportunity here, I want to make sure our city is inviting and our streets are inviting for people to walk on them.”
Davis also sees a new revenue opportunity in the fledgling Public Bank of Pomona Valley. Still in its early stages, Davis said he has been engaged in a study group looking to establish a public bank that would serve the cities of La Verne, Pomona, Claremont and San Dimas.
Meanwhile, his stance on supporting the city’s transition to a rotating mayor hasn’t changed. Rotating the job between the representatives elected by each district ensures balance in leadership, he said.
Steve Johnson
Johnson, 60, is self-employed in the insurance field and got into the race to reverse the recent changes in the city’s elections.
Johnson, who served on the council from 2003 to 2011, stepped down after he went to trial for his vote on the expansion of the University of La Verne, an action that had come under fire as a potential conflict of interest. Johnson was found not guilty.
Now, Johnson said, he is making a bid to return to the council to “correct this mistake” made by officials last year.
“I wasn’t looking to run for office this time, but this issue is so large that I felt compelled to run again,” Johnson said. “The timing feels right.”
Referencing the 1972 election where La Verne voters approved a ballot measure to elect their mayor every two years, Johnson said he would work to “reestablish the people’s voice.”
Meshal Kashifalghita
Kashifalghita, 46, is a special operations agent for the state of California who grew up in La Verne and began his career as a police cadet in 1995. He credits his upbringing with shaping him and said it makes him the right candidate to lead the district. A 22-year law enforcement veteran, Kashifalghita said he would focus on public safety, if elected. He aims to prevent a surge in homeless individuals he says may arrive in La Verne as a result of the L Line opening in 2025.
“We have to have a public safety professional that understands what it is to fight crime, violence and homelessness. We haven’t had that. We don’t have that currently and that is a priority of mine,” he said.
He’d also like to work with Los Angeles County to transform Camps Paige and Afflerbaugh, the juvenile detention facilities, into a fire camp for incarcerated individuals.
Joe Gabaldon
Public safety is also a top priority for Gabaldon, 54, a chief operating officer for a coding curriculum company working with schools across the country. A supporter of the efforts to recall L.A. County District Attorney George Gascón, Gabaldon also helped lead opposition to the county’s plan to bring serious juvenile offenders to La Verne.
A regular fixture at City Council meetings, Gabaldon wants to use his financial and technical background to push the city forward, he said. Much of the city’s technology, he said, is outdated.
“I think technology is a huge area of opportunity because of where we are right now,” Gabaldon said. “We have to get ahead of the game for the next iteration of La Verne.”
Both candidates say they support an at-large mayor, and would take action to reverse the council’s decision to rotate the job.
Tim Hepburn
For Hepburn, 65, who was elected mayor in March 2020 and has served on the council for seven years, there is still more work to do. With the incoming L Line extension, Hepburn said the city is set to see changes but he wants residents to provide their input along the way.
“The biggest thing is transparency and the open governance to make sure residents are well represented in our community and making them aware of any decisions that affect them in any way, shape or form,” Hepburn said.
He points to his leadership during the start of the coronavirus pandemic — keeping essential businesses open and making sure residents shopped local — as one of his proudest achievements. Hepburn also touts his involvement in the defeat of plans to bring high-level juvenile offenders to La Verne.
He was the staunchest supporter of the city keeping an at-large mayor, voting against the measure to make the job a rotating gig. Hepburn said many residents were not aware of the city’s transition to district-based elections, a communication problem he wants to address.
Richard Gill
Gill, 57, also supports putting the mayor’s seat back in the hands of voters. A videographer who tapes council meetings, Gill said he is running to “right a wrong.”
In addition, if elected, he would push the city to undergo a forensic audit to get a true sense of how resident’s dollars are being used.
“I just want to understand where all the money’s going. The city has said they’ve done an audit, but I want a real true scrubbing of everything,” Gill said.
Estella V. Maldonado
Maldonado, 55, a security and cyber risk program manager at Delta Dental, is running for political office for the first time. A single parent of two sons, one in the Air Force and one going to college, she has lived in La Verne for 23 years.
But its Maldonado’s experience managing large projects and working with tech companies, she said, that gives her the “right experience La Verne needs.”
She said residents’ worries about the possible influx of homeless individuals in coming years is valid and she wants to improve collaboration between the city and the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority.
“The city is about to go into a growth spurt and I feel like some of the status quo decision-making management styles may not necessarily serve the city well,” Maldonado said. “We need to start being more proactive.”