Tuesday could be an historic day in Newport-Mesa.
Why? For plenty of reasons.
There are six council seats up for the taking in Newport Beach.
There are two sharply divided sides in Costa Mesa, where immigration enforcement has put the city on the national radar.
Longtime incumbents are seeking four more years on the Newport-Mesa Unified School District.
And elsewhere on the ballot are local races with familiar names.
It all makes for a busy ballot on what, because of a horde of statewide initiatives, is already crowded with names and arguments.
In Newport-Mesa, at least, here's who is running and what is at stake:
Costa Mesa City Council
The race for two seats on the City Council has become increasingly bitter and divisive, with the city's planned enforcement of immigration laws remaining the central issue. But public safety, the dearth of playing fields in the city and development on the Westside have also been the focus of the campaign.
Newport Beach City Council
District 1
The most crowded field in Newport Beach, the Balboa Peninsula district includes a Greenlight-backed candidate, Brenda Martin, two who are targeting each other — Michael Henn and Jack Wu — and a fourth candidate who is keeping up in the race, Marcia Dossey. Besides the controversial city measures V and X, the existence of drug treatment homes has been a central issue.
District 3The District 3 race isn't much of one. Mayor Don Webb is running unopposed.
