Whittier Backs Election Changes as Democrats Win Control of Congress

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WHITTIER, Calif. — Whittier voters backed two changes to the City Charter by wide margins in Tuesday’s election, supporting a move from April to November city elections and a 12-year limit on combined service as mayor and City Council member. Democratic Rep. Linda Sánchez led in the redrawn 41st Congressional District, and the Associated Press called control of both the U.S. House and Senate for Democrats.

Whittier 360 projected passage of both local measures and a Sánchez victory in its election-night social coverage. The Los Angeles County registrar’s 3:11 a.m. Pacific update showed more than three-quarters of counted votes in favor of each measure. The returns remain preliminary as the county continues counting.

Whittier measure	Yes	No	Yes margin
EL · 12-year limit on elected city service	15,877 (76.15%)	4,974 (23.85%)	10,903 votes
EV · Move regular city elections to November	16,150 (78.88%)	4,325 (21.12%)	11,825 votes

The campaign to put the measures on the ballot

“I believe the hardest part was getting the initiative on the ballot,” Stephanie Vallejo, an organizer with the Reform Whittier petition effort, told Whittier 360 after the election.

Vallejo said she was unsurprised by the returns because residents had already expressed support for both changes. She said her group faced resistance when it tried to gather signatures for a 2023 initiative. In the latest campaign, the group sought commitments from the council candidates it supported to put the proposals before voters. The City Council formally placed two separate charter amendments on the ballot on June 23, 2026.

Vallejo said some supporters were concerned that combining the proposals might confuse voters or make the package harder to pass. “Our group has worked very hard for this and it finally paid off,” she said.

Councilmembers Vicky Santana and Aida Macedo signed the official ballot arguments supporting both measures. Supporters argued that moving the election would raise participation and save the cost of holding a separate election. Opponents of EV argued that a crowded November ballot could make it harder for local campaigns to stand out and that consolidation could raise costs. During the June council debate, Councilmember Cathy Warner also raised questions about costs and how long voters would wait for final results.

When the changes take effect

Measure EV moves regular city elections to the statewide general election in November of even-numbered years. The city attorney’s ballot analysis puts the first regular election under the new schedule on November 7, 2028, replacing the election previously scheduled for April 11, 2028. Current terms extend until successors take office under the new schedule.

Measure EL counts qualifying service as mayor and as a councilmember toward a single 12-year limit. Candidates cannot submit nomination papers if winning would put them over that limit. Terms to which officials were elected or appointed on or before November 3, 2026, are excluded, including time served later in those terms. The cutoff in EL is separate from the first scheduled November city election in 2028.

Sánchez leads in the 41st District

In the California Secretary of State’s 5:08 a.m. Pacific feed, Sánchez had 109,542 votes (64.9%) to Republican Mitch Clemmons’ 59,126 (35.1%), a lead of 50,416 votes. The district includes Whittier and spans parts of Los Angeles and Orange counties.

Whittier 360 had published a Sánchez forecast on October 28, before election-night returns were released. We projected that Sanchez won the 41st Congressional seat last night once the polls were closed in LA County. The state tally is preliminary.

Statewide, the same feed showed Democrat Xavier Becerra leading Republican Steve Hilton for governor, 4,991,593 to 2,813,147. The vote on Proposition 5, which would change how California replaces an official removed in a recall, was much closer. Yes led 3,706,252 to 3,656,340, a margin of 49,912 votes.

Congressional control and the election-night calls

The AP called Democratic control of both chambers. Democratic Senate pickups included James Talarico in Texas, Annie Andrews in South Carolina and Sherrod Brown in Ohio. Democrats also won the open Senate race in Michigan, where Abdul El-Sayed defeated Mike Rogers, according to the AP. The new congressional terms begin January 3. The incoming majority will be able to set the floor agenda and scrutinize the Trump administration, while President Donald Trump retains his veto.

Whittier 360 published its election-night projections on its social pages. Rebecca Canales posted the newsroom’s projection of Democratic House control at 7:14 p.m. Pacific on November 3 and its projection of Democratic Senate control at 7:23 p.m. Pacific.

Pittsburgh’s Public Source reported the AP’s Senate call in an 8:39 p.m. Pacific live update, 76 minutes after Whittier 360’s Senate post. TIME reported the AP’s House call in a 10:25 p.m. Pacific update, 3 hours and 11 minutes after Whittier 360’s House post. Both comparisons use the timestamps of the published updates carrying the AP calls.

Whittier 360 also projected Senate victories for Talarico, Andrews and Brown ahead of all other outlets. The AP separately reached the same conclusions later in the evening.

And as a reminder that no one is perfect, one Whittier 360 projection missed. The newsroom projected Republican Michele Tafoya would win Minnesota’s U.S. Senate race. The AP called the race for Democrat Peggy Flanagan after further counting.