Community advocates want more attention on March primary after Sacramento councilman's resignation
SACRAMENTO — There's a new call to action in the aftermath of a Sacramento City Hall scandal after District 2 Councilmember Sean Loloeee resigned following a federal indictment.
Now there is a new effort to get a bigger voter turnout in the coming election.
The city hall scandal and the resignation of Loloee have community advocates looking to seize the opportunity and reimagine civic engagement in this long-underserved community.
Daniel Savala is the executive director of the Del Paso Boulevard Partnership who is now launching a political action committee trying to get more people paying attention to this year's March primary.
"I think everyone is going to recognize how crazy this is, and everyone is going to come together and do what's right for the district," Savala said. "High priority projects: let's clean up the district, let's get solid waste, let's get a handle on this illegal dumping, let's get these housing developments built on Del Paso Boulevard."
The district's last primary voting performance was anemic. Only 27% of eligible voters in District 2 cast ballots in 2020. That's compared to 43% citywide.
Loloee's council victory led to a term that came to an abrupt end Thursday when he resigned following a federal indictment.
Sacramento political analyst Steve Maviglio said Loloee's departure could have a significant impact on new policy crafted by the council.
"It was a long time coming in a lot of people's view," Maviglio said. "He was a dead man walking for quite some time. He was one swing vote, and now it will be tied on many issues, and, possibly, it will go the other way on some issues because he was probably the most conservative member."
Loloee's former seat sat empty in this first council meeting since first since his resignation. The mayor, during Tuesday's city council meeting, formally announced the plan to fill it.
Will this shake-up in city hall politics bring change to those seeking to champion the Del Paso Heights community?
"We need an individual who's focused on District 2 and nothing else," Savala said.
The mayor announced the city council has come to an agreement that if one of the nine District 2 candidates gets 50% of the vote in the primary in March, that person will be sworn in immediately to begin serving as councilmember.
If there is a runoff in the race, the full council will appoint a caretaker until after the runoff election in November.