JUNE 7 - OV DEMOCRATIC CLUB MEETS

OJAI VALLEY DEMOCRATS June Meeting — June 7, 2026 Ojai Art Center | 113 So. Montgomery St.

Doors Open 4:30 PM | Meeting Starts 5:00 PM

AGENDA

• Welcome — President Starchild Weivoda

• June 2 Election Results

• Local Elections: Filing Dates for Ojai City and OUSD Open Positions (see below)

• Local Candidates/Endorsements Subcommittee

• Adopt Resolution in Support of At-Large Voting (see below)

• At-Large Voting Initiative: Costs, Effort, Timing

• Minutes of Last OVDC Meeting — April 26, 2026 (see below)

• Treasurer Report — Ivan Chen

• Next Meeting Dates: July 19, August 16
  

Ojai District Map | Which District do you live in? | ARE THEY NEEDED?

Mayor Andy Gilman Elected at-large by all the voters in 2024

District 1 Leslie Rule 2022-26

District 2 Rachel Lang 2022-26

District 3 Andrew Whitman 2022-26

District 4 Kim Mang 2024-28

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Local Elections: Filing Dates and Candidates HERE

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Download OVDC Resolution 26-01 here

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Ojai Valley Democratic Club

Minutes of 4/26/2026 Meeting

Presentation of Michelle Ascension

Willie Lybka introduced Michelle Ascension, the currently elected Clerk and Recorder of Ventura County.  Michelle is responsible for managing the integrity of our local elections. Michelle said she was focused on three things:  integrity, responsibility and results, both for herself and her staff.

Michelle provided an overview of the election process and described the lengths her office goes to ensure election integrity.  Ojai Democrats gave Michelle our rousing support.

Business Meeting

The first order of business was election of officers.  The following individuals were elected by the specified vote totals

·      Starchild Weivoda was elected President by a vote of 13 yes and zero no

·      Renee Roth was elected Secretary by a vote of 15 yes and zero no

·      Ivan Chen was elected Treasurer by a vote of 16 yes and zero no

Treasurer’s Report

Treasurer Ivan Chen reported that the club had $217 in its bank account.  He also observed that he would be able to establish a PayPal account once he received verification of a Federal identification #147.

Upcoming City Council Vote on at-large elections

There was extended discussion of the pros and cons of changing Ojai’s district voting pattern to at-large.  Randy Haney and Leslie Rule provided insight into the thinking of the City Council that led to the initial decision to go to District Voting,  Michelle Ascension confirmed that the decision to go to at-large voting would not cause any additional cost or effort on the part of the County. 

The members approved a motion to send a letter to the City Council encouraging them to move forward with a decision to go to an at-large system.