Ojai Municipal Code Art. 1 City Council Members Elected By-District

The City Council declares that this change in method of electing members of the City of Ojai City Council is enacted in furtherance of the California Voting Rights Act of 2001.

(§ 2, Ord. 889, eff. December 11, 2018)

Beginning with the municipal election in November 2020, the four members of the City Council shall be elected in the electoral districts established by Section 2-6.103 and subsequently reapportioned as provided by State law. Elections shall take place by-district as that term is defined in California Government Code Section 34871, meaning one member of the City Council shall be elected from each district by the voters of that district alone. Each member of the City Council shall serve a four year term.

(§ 2, Ord. 889, eff. December 11, 2018)

Members of the City Council shall be elected on a by-district basis from the four City Council districts hereby established. The boundaries and identifying number of each district shall be as described on the City Council District Map attached to the ordinance codified in this chapter as "Exhibit A" and incorporated by reference.

(§ 2, Ord. 889, eff. December 11, 2018)

Commencing with the general municipal election in November 2020 and every four years thereafter the voters in District 4 shall elect a member of the City Council by-district for a full four year term. At the general municipal election in November 2022 and every four years thereafter, the voters in Districts 1, 2, and 3 shall elect members of the City Council by-district for full four year terms.

(§ 2, Ord. 889, eff. December 11, 2018)

Each member of the City Council elected by-district must reside in that district and be a registered voter in that district, and any candidate for City Council must reside in, and be a registered voter in, the district in which he or she seeks election at the time nomination papers are issued pursuant to Government Code Section 34882 and Elections Code Section 10227. It is the intent of the City Council that no term of any member of the City Council that commenced on the same day as or before the effective date of this ordinance shall be affected by this chapter. Any sitting City Council member elected at-large may reside anywhere within the City during the pendency of his or her term in effect on the effective date of the ordinance codified in this chapter.

(§ 2, Ord. 889, eff. December 11, 2018)

Registered voters signing nomination papers or voting for a member of the City Council shall be residents of the geographical area making up the district from which the candidate is to be elected.

(§ 2, Ord. 889, eff. December 11, 2018)

(a) Termination of residency in a district by a member of the City Council elected by-district shall create a vacancy for that City Council District unless a substitute residence within the district is immediately declared and established within 30 days after the termination of residency. In the event that a vacancy is created as a result of termination of residency as provided herein, such vacancy shall be filled pursuant to the provisions of the Elections Code.

(b) For purposes of this article, for the duration of their term, a sitting City Council member elected by-district does not terminate their residency in the district from which they were elected by moving outside of that district, if: the City Council member continues to reside in the City of Ojai; the move either was not due to any fault of the City Council member or was involuntary; and the City Council member maintains the intention to remain in that district. This section is retroactively applicable to March 19, 2020, the commencement of the statewide COVID-19 shutdown under Executive Order N-33-20.

(§ 2, Ord. 889, eff. December 11, 2018, as amended by Ord. No. 959, eff. 10/10/2024)

If necessary to facilitate the implementation of this article, the City Clerk is authorized to make technical adjustments to the district boundaries that do not substantively affect the populations in the districts, the eligibility of candidates, or the residence of elected officials within any district. The City Clerk shall consult with the City Manager and City Attorney concerning any technical adjustments deemed necessary and shall advise the City Council of any such adjustments required in the implementation of the districts.

(§ 2, Ord. 889, eff. December 11, 2018)