6A
Date: August 25, 2026
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From Rebecca Poirier, City Clerk
By: Crystal Cammarota, Deputy City Clerk III | [email protected] Subject: City Clerk – Appointment to Fill District 4 City Council Vacancy. Expenditure: None.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation of the City Clerk that City Council take action to fill the District 4 vacancy seat (term expiring March 7, 2028) on City Council by appointment from one of the eligible applicants.
FUNDING
None required.
DISCUSSION
At the meeting of July 21, 2026, the City Council directed the City Clerk to advertise and make applications and supplemental questionnaires available to residents interested in completing the unexpired term of District 4 City Councilmember Sharon Kalani who was elected Mayor and took office on July 14, 2026. Under Torrance City Charter, Section 403(a) the City Council shall appoint a new member within 60 days of a vacancy. To appoint a new member, it takes a majority of the quorum of Councilmembers present.
The appointment process will consist of the Mayor asking for nominations from the City Council.
City Councilmembers will nominate one applicant. The goal of the nominations is to narrow down the number of applicants for voting. The City Council will then vote on the nominated applicants.
An applicant must receive a majority of votes to be appointed.
If the City Council fails to arrive at an agreed appointment by September 13, 2026, the City Council must direct the City Clerk to return with an item to call a special election at the next regularly scheduled meeting per Torrance City Charter Section 403.
An ad was placed in the Daily Breeze; notices were posted on noticeboards at City Hall, City of Torrance website, City Newsletter and the City’s Social Media.
As of 5:00 p.m. on August 13, 2026, twelve (12) applications were submitted to this office. The applicants were verified as registered voters in District 4 in the City of Torrance and are eligible for appointment. The following individuals have applied and binders containing the information have been prepared for your review.
1 City Council
August 25, 2026
The 12 applicants in alphabetical order by last name are:
Nida Ahmed Nadia Antii Linda Barnett
Adam Bettino Andres Cabrera James Han
Jessica Maldonado G. Rick Marshall Adam Schwartz
Arohi Sharma Bill Sutherland Paul Thompson
If requested, full City Council Agenda packets will be prepared and made available to each applicant in order that any member appointed could be conversant with items on this agenda.
The City Clerk is prepared to give the oath of office to the individual appointed to fill the vacancy.
A blank oath has been prepared to use for signature of the appointee. Due to the nature of the appointment process, a framed official certificate of appointment will be provided at a later date.
The appointed member will serve until the March 7, 2028 General Municipal election results are certified and adopted by City Council.
The California Elections Code Section 15651 provides two methods for the legislative body to resolve the event of tie votes when any of two or more persons receive an equal number of votes.
Past Councils desired to resolve tie votes by lot whether it be an election or appointment. If your honorable body makes no choice before the deadline of September 13, 2026, a Special Election must be called.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Redacted District 4 City Council Vacancy Applications
2. Correspondence received
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