Los Angeles’ 99 neighborhood councils provide one of the best ways for local residents to access city government at its most grass roots level, and to weigh in officially on important issues such as traffic, public safety, land use, and more. Today, Sunday, April 30, our two local neighborhood councils, the Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council and the Mid City West Neighborhood Council, will be holding elections for all seats on their boards…so this is your big chance to have a say in who will represent you on either or (possibly, for some people) both of these bodies for the next two years.
Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council
The GWNC board consists of 21 directors, 15 of them representing specific geographic areas within the GWNC boundaries, five representing specific community interests (Business, Education, Religion, Non-Profit Organizations, and Renters), and one At Large seat. A full list of candidates running for each seat is available here.
Election Details
In-person voting for the GWNC will take place today – Sunday, April 30, 2023 – in the parking lot of the Barking Lot pet supply store, at 336 N. Larchmont Blvd., from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Also, in addition to in-person voting, stakeholders who requested mail-in ballots before April 11, and who have not yet returned them via U.S. mail, can drop off their ballots at the Barking Lot during the election hours on Sunday.
Eligibility
Everyone who lives, works, or owns property within the GWNC boundaries, and/or who has ties to one of the five community interest categories in the area (Business, Education, Religion, Renters, Religion, or Other Non-Profit Organizations), and who is 16 years old by election day, is eligible to vote in up to two categories in the GWNC election – their Geographic Area plus one of the community special interest categories…or the At Large seat. People who do not live, work, or own property in the area, and who do not qualify for one of the community interest categories – but who do claim some other sort of stake in the neighborhood – may vote only for the At Large representative.
To verify stakeholder status and eligibility to vote for all board seats (including the At Large seat) on election day, voters must provide a drivers license (or other picture ID with age and address). In addition, for the specific community interest seats (Renters, Non-Profit, Education, Religion, Business) stakeholders are required to provide one additional piece of evidence to support their eligibility as part of that constituency in the GWNC area. (See the City Elections website for examples.)
Mid City West Neighborhood Council
The Mid City West Neighborhood Council has more board members than the GWNC (36 to the GWNC’s 21), and those representatives are also divided differently. Unlike the GWNC, the MCWNC has only seven geographic Zones representing its various neighborhoods (see map above)…but it has multiple seats for each of its specific community interest categories – three for Homeowners, five seats for Renters, six for Business representatives, six for representatives of Non-Profit Organizations, one Youth representative, and eight At-Large members. Currently, there are 40 candidates running for the MCWNC’s 36 board seats.
Election Details
Like the GWNC’s election, the election for all seats on the Mid City West Neighborhood Council will be held today, Sunday, April 30, but the location will be different. In-person voting and vote-by-mail ballot drop-offs for the MCWNC will take place at the entrance to the Pan Pacific Park Rec Center, 7600 Beverly Blvd., from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Eligibility
As Mid City West Ad Hoc Election Committee Chair Amy Goldenberg told the Buzz earlier this month, the MCWNC “uses Self-Affirmation when voting, for both stakeholders and residents. However, for stakeholders, there needs to be an address attached to their involvement, such as a house of worship, school, business, organization, etc.”
Also, Goldenberg explained that “for our Youth seat, voters must be at least 14 years old. All other voters must be at least 16 years old. Which means if a voter is 14-15, they can vote only for the Youth Seat.”
“All other requirements for stakeholder or resident status apply to those youth voters,” Goldenberg said. “They must live, work, go to school, attend a place of worship, or volunteer at a non-profit within the borders of Mid City West. For voters 16 and older, owning a business, owning property, or having a child attending school within the MCW borders are also qualifications for eligibility to vote.”
For more information on eligibility and voter documentation for either the Mid City West Neighborhood Council or the Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council, see the 2023 Neighborhood Council Elections Documentation Guide at https://clkrep.lacity.org/election/2023_NC_Documentation_Guide.pdf
See you at the polls!
