A conservative super majority holds control of the Chico City Council.
This election progressive candidates believed that could change and made that sentiment clear at the Green City Chico Block Party in Meriam Park on election night.
Despite former President Donald Trump being in the lead, the atmosphere was very festive at Tio’s Pizza.
The gathering focused on city council candidates and their progress.
Bryce Goldstein, District 7 Chico City Council candidate, was trying her best not to look at the national results. She said she’s hoping for a change in Chico’s current council.
“Keeping my hopes in moderation, I hope enough of us can win that we can change the tide on the city council so that we can make actual progress towards making our city better,” Goldstein said.
Monica McDaniel, a council candidate for District 3, lost the race in 2022 to Dale Bennett by around 200 votes. She’s running against him again — in another tight race this election — because she wants to see more positive decision-making.
“When the Chico City Council is doing a good job, there’s not a lot of controversy around them,” McDaniel said. “We sort of don’t even notice what they’re up to because things are running so smoothly. And that’s the Chico I want to see again.”
District 4 Councilmember Addison Winslow has been the only progressive on the council for the past two years. He feels optimistic about the unofficial council results.
“For me, feeling like even if the whole council doesn’t flip that I’m gonna have some other people on there, is an enormous sense of relief,” Winslow said. “The job that I’ve had up until now, for the last couple years, will never exist for anybody ever again.”
Four of the council's seven seats were up for election.
As of the latest unofficial election results, progressive candidates Bryce Goldstein and Katie Hawley are leading their elections.
Monica McDaniel is trailing Dale Bennett by a slim margin, and Chico former Police Chief Mike O’Brien is poised to win his race against Mike Johnson.
NSPR does not consider the results official until the election is certified.
