During its July 15 meeting, the Porterville City Council appointed Adrian Monte Reyes to fill the spot left open after Councilmember Pete McCracken’s passing.
The city’s charter required the council to agree upon and appoint a replacement within 30 days of a vacancy; after 30 days, the mayor could have directly appointed a replacement.
The city fielded a total of 16 applications from the following people during the short period of July 1st to July 9th, including most candidates that lost in the June election:
- Russell Fletcher
- Felipe A. Martinez
- Larry Harper
- Adrian Monte Reyes
- Ronald L. Irish
- Daniel A. Figueroa
- Shawn Cable
- Matthew Green
- Shawn R. Schwartzenberger
- Phillip Wm. Duncan
- Juan Vargas Hernandez
- Rodney Martin
- Peggy King (Newlin)
- Martha A. Flores
- Jon T. Hallberg
- Liberty A. Lomeli
Reyes did not participate in the June election.
Reyes has served in a variety of positions in the community: he is the co-founder of the Imagine Community Arts Center in Porterville, chairman of the Porterville Arts Commission, and a member of the Leadership Porterville Steering Committee.
Due to his appointment and to prevent any conflicts of interest, Reyes resigned from his position on the Porterville Chamber of Commerce; his appointment also created a vacancy at the Porterville Arts Commission.
“I want to thank everyone who turned in their papers,” Reyes said after being sworn in. “It takes an extreme amount of confidence and a love of your community to fill out your papers and put them in and put your name in amongst other people.”
The full agenda and minutes from the meeting — including all of the submitted applications — are available at the city’s website by clicking here.