As a former mayor of the City of Newport Beach and an involved citizen, I have some reservations about losing Leslie Daigle, who has been an effective representative on the Newport Beach City Council. Leslie is a serious, focused, solutions-oriented representative on the City Council who has demonstrated a steady force for fiscally sound budget decisions, for our struggling small-business community. She has also had a constructive environmental ethic focused on keeping our coastal and bay waters clean.
But term limits are on the horizon for Leslie, and she is organizing a campaign to run for a newly drawn Assembly district seat that includes the coastal cities of Newport Beach, Huntington Beach and Laguna Beach, as well as the inland cities of Costa Mesa, Irvine and Laguna Woods.
I believe she is the most qualified candidate to represent this new district. And while we would lose Leslie Daigle as a dedicated city leader, we can look forward to having an assemblywoman in Sacramento who understands our community, will champion our issues, and will be a vote to restore California’s economy, modify its out-of-control borrowing and spending, and better balance honest environmental concerns with legitimate economic considerations.
It has been reported that Assemblyman Allan Mansoor, the former mayor of Costa Mesa, will seek reelection as the “incumbent” in this new district. The fact is that the new 74th Assembly District contains only 20 percent of the voters from Mansoor’s current district. Newport Beach has more registered voters in the new 74th than does Costa Mesa. So this is going to be a wide open race to represent a new powerhouse district that contains the county’s strongest job and retail centers, its most significant environmental assets, and its most attractive, energetic communities.
When the campaign begins in earnest, I believe that Leslie’s measured, constructive approach and record will be much more appealing and much more convincing to the voters across this diverse district than any opponent that might enter the race.
If Leslie has to leave the Newport Beach City Council, I will be pleased to have her remain in public life as our representative to the 74th Assembly District in the California Assembly.
Dennis D. O’Neil
Daigle would be a nightmare and has said she will agree with the democrats to raise taxes.