[Editor’s Note: Culver City’s 13 precinct locations are listed at the end of the story.]
On the afternoon before Election Day, Dep. City Clerk Ela Valladares was asked how she is warming up for the morrow.
After 20 years at City Hall and 12 years of supervising elections, Ms. Valladares is on a first-name basis with every headache and every joy associated with Election Day.
She threw her head back as she pondered the question, laughing heartily.
“I pray a lot,” she said.
Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
The City Council candidates are listed in the following order on the ballot:
Mehaul O’Leary
Jeff Cooper
Gary Russell
Luther L. Henderson III
Randy Scott Leslie
Andrew Weissman
Christopher R. Armenta
Cary Bert Anderson
Loni Anderson
Although a flock of City Council hopefuls have been arduously campaigning since New Year’s Day, it remains questionable once again this year whether they have succeeding in stimulating long slumbering Culver City voters.
From a Culver City public relations standpoint, the grim news is that despite the presence of nine City Council candidates on Tuesday’s ballot, Ms. Valladares has not spotted any signs of unusual interest.
She is predicting that a mediocre 20 to 23 percent of Culver City’s 30,000 registered voters will turn out, the reliable rate in good, bad and average years —about 6,000 votes.
By perhaps 9:45 tomorrow night, vote-counting should be completed in Council Chambers, and residents will learn the names of their three new Council members.
The outcome of the ballot proposition Measure W, the utility users’ tax, probably will be known before that hour.
The first election indicators are not promising, Ms. Valladares said.
Thirty-eight hundred absentee ballots were placed in the mail, but fewer than half (1700) have been returned with only mail delivery left.
All absentee ballots must be received either at City Hall or at one of the baker’s dozen of polling places before 8 on Tuesday evening.
The Deputy City Clerk explained the procedure with absentee voting.
“For each absentee ballot that comes in,” said Ms. Valladares, “I need to get the signature verified by the County. That is a pretty quick turnaround that takes about a day.
“In addition to absentees, you have provisional ballots that may be cast tomorrow.”
Provisional ballots are cast by voters who will participate at a precinct other than their home location.
Like the absentees, provisionals also have to be verified by the County.
Ms. Valladares estimated it will be the first of the week before the absentees and provisions are tabulated.
But unless this is an uncommonly snug election, the winners should be identified by a little past mid-evening.
Culver City’s 13 polling places:
Precinct 1 — 3337 McManus Ave., a residence.
Precinct 2 — Culver Ice Arena, 4545 Sepulveda Blvd.
Precinct 4 — City Hall, Dan Patacchia Room, 9770 Culver Blvd.
Precinct 7 — Julian Dixon Library, 4975 Overland Ave.
Precinct 11 — Vets Auditorium, 4117 Overland Ave.
Precinct 14 — 5964 Stoneview Dr., residence.
Precinct 22 — Grandview Palms, 4062 Grandview Blvd.
Precinct 25 — Rotary Plaza, 5100 Overland Ave.
Precinct 27 — El Marino Language School, 11450 Port Rd.
Precinct 31 — El Rincon School, 11177 Overland Ave.
Precinct 42 — Raintree Condos, Lakeside Clubhouse, 2000 Raintree Circle.
Precinct 73 — The Meadows, 6300 Green Valley Circle.
Precinct 74 — La Sorra Loma Apartments, 6000 Buckingham Pkwy.