Redondo Elects New Treasurer

After more than six months and three rounds of ballots, Redondo Beach's 2013 municipal election season is finally over with the election of a new city treasurer.

Former Councilman Steve Diels earned 56 percent of the vote, beating out his opponent, Dawn Esser, who received 44 percent of ballots.

Though there are still 455 ballots remaining to be verified and counted, it would be impossible for Esser to overcome the 1,095-vote margin that separates her from Diels.

Both candidates ran on a platform of reform and cost-cutting, with Diels advocating reducing the salary of the city treasurer by more than 50 percent and removing the requirement in the city charter that the treasurer be a full-time position. Esser, on the other hand, said she supported a plan to replace the retiring full-time deputy treasurer with a part-time person.

"Clearly, I ran on a very specific platform, and that platform won," Diels told Patch on Tuesday night after learning the results. "I respect Dawn Esser for having articulated the opposition to my plan … People had a clear choice."

On her campaign Facebook page, Esser congratulated Diels on his win.

"I look forward to seeing swift implementation of the reforms you cited during your campaign," she wrote.

Diels said he doesn't foresee any cuts in services the office provides, only cuts in costs.

"We will be reforming that office," he said.

He said he will ask the City Council to reduce the treasurer's salary to around $25,000 annually—just above minimum wage for a full-time job. Additionally, he plans to have the council place amendments to the city charter that would reform the office on the ballot for the 2015 municipal election.

Because former Treasurer Ernie O'Dell resigned with more than two years left in his term and after the filing period for the March elections, the charter required the city to hold a special election to replace him. None of the three candidates in that election, which was held on the same ballot as the runoff elections for mayor and city council, received more than 50 percent of the vote, so Diels and Esser—who were the top-two vote-getters—moved on to the runoff.

Diels' term as treasurer will only last about a year and a half, so Diels plans to seek re-election.

"It's going to begin again," he said. "I'm obligated to (run for re-election) because I need to see these reforms all the way through."

Any changes in salary would go into effect after the next election cycle; however, Diels said he intends to keep the salary he would earn during his shortened term.

"I just spent $40,000 on this election," he told Patch. "I'm basically working for free."

Diels also took issue with the length of the election season, calling it "an endurance race."

"That's got to change," he said. "There was real voter fatigue out there."

Approximately 9,100 ballots were cast during the all-mail runoff, compared to about 8,700 cast for the May 14 runoff and special election. The remaining 455 ballots, once verified, will be counted Monday.

Diels will take the oath of office in August, according to City Clerk Eleanor Manzano.