Two candidates seeking to fill a vacancy left by outgoing conservative councilman Don Harper include attorney and businessman Mike Buley and city planning commissioner and environmental consultant Adam Ereth.
Costa Mesa residents will vote for four seats in the City Council election in less than 40 days, featuring a mix of incumbents looking to continue their work and challengers advocating for new directions in local governance.
Seven candidates are on the ballot after qualifying to run earlier this year. While the victors of District seats 1, 2, and 6 will serve a four-year term, voters will elect a Mayor to serve two years.
District 1, which covers the Mesa Verde and State Streets neighborhoods, will have two challengers seeking to fill a vacancy left by outgoing conservative councilman Don Harper. Those two candidates include attorney and businessman Mike Buley and city planning commissioner and environmental consultant Adam Ereth.
Buley, whom Harper endorses, has focused his campaign on cracking down on homelessness by providing services for those in need and enforcing laws against those who refuse help. He has also stated in his candidate statement that he would ramp up law enforcement, rework the city budget, and relocate city cannabis dispensaries away from homes and schools.
“As a neighbor, parent, attorney, and businessman, I will use my professional skills and abilities to represent you,” his campaign statement states.
Meanwhile, Ereth said his focus as a council member would include rezoning commercial sites, alleviating traffic congestion, and supporting ownership housing opportunities and small businesses. His candidate statement also says restricting cannabis shops and sober living homes and supporting homeless prevention programs and police/fire services are also on his agenda.
“I’m a proud, local business owner, and I have extensive experience in local, county and state government,” he writes in his campaign statement. “As chair of our Planning Commission, I have a deep understanding of our city’s government, and I’ve made a career cutting red tape.”
Ereth became part of the planning commission in 2021. He also served on Costa Mesa’s Finance and Pension Advisory Committee and a Newport-Mesa Unified School District surplus land committee.
Conversations concerning housing, construction, and public services frequently shift towards wider political beliefs, as some locals believe that city politics are overly influenced by broader state or national political patterns.
Costa Mesa’s next General Municipal Election will be held on Tuesday, November 5, 2024.
