WEST HOLLYWOOD—On March 8, Mayor John Heilman, council member Abbe Land and challenger John D’Amico were victorious in a local election involving nine different contestants.
The candidates included two incumbents and one appointed-incumbent, a former-city council member, one Transportation Commission member, a former Planning Commissioner and several civil rights activists.
The West Hollywood City Council decides the city’s development strategy, dictating zoning requirements and setting guidelines for growth.
West Hollywood is unarguably a prominent Democrat Party center, with eight of the nine candidates claiming membership in the Democrat Party, although one candidate identified himself as a Republican.
Reelected Mayor John Heilman served on the city council since 1984, having been mayor seven times.
Council member Abbe Land was reelected to her sixth term in office, being the beneficiary of a vacancy appointment in 1986. Land has been mayor four times over the last 20 years.
Appointed incumbent and unseated council member Lindsay Horvath was selected to fill the position left vacant by the May 2009 death of council member Sal Guarriello. Horvath lost to challenger John D’Amico, who is currently the manager of the UCLA’s School of Medicine.
Also at issue in the West Hollywood election was Measure A, which failed to garner voter approval. Measure A, the “Tax Billboard Act,” faced significant opposition, with only 983 affirmative votes against 3,865 “no” votes. The measure would purportedly have raised money for HIV/AIDS research through new taxes levied on billboard companies.
