City of Salinas appoints Jesus Valenzuela to District 3 Council seat formerly held by Steve McShane

SALINAS, Calif. (KION-TV) - UPDATE MAY 21, 2024 11:30 P.M: Salinas City Council appointed Jesus Valenzuela to the District 3 seat by a 5-1 vote Tuesday night, with Mayor Kimbley Craig being the only opposing vote.

Valenzuela currently works as a Community Engagement Manager for the City of Soledad. He tells KION, he thinks his experience in that role will help him engage with the people of Salinas.

“Some of the first actions will be actually implementing some civics academies, because as one of the council members said, it's a lot of paperwork, it's a lot of documents that we as a city council have to present to the public," Valenzuela said. "To do so in a way that's succinct, that's accessible, that's culturally relevant. That is what I'm going to be focusing on."

He is set be officially sworn in on June 11, according to the city. His appointment is for a term through the November election.

When asked if he plans on running for reelection at the end of this term, Valenzuela said, "I'm very interested in continuing to run in November."

The appointment came after an over three hour public hearing with 10 other applicants who interviewed with city council.

ORIGINAL MAY 14, 2024 12:32 PM - The City of Salinas is getting one step closer to appointing a person to fill the vacant District 3 City Council seat.

A spokesperson for the City confirmed to KION that 11 people have applied for the vacant District 3 Council seat.

Here is a list of people who applied for the seat.

• Bradley J. Clinton
• Eloise A. Shim
• David Maisonneuve
• Joel R. Panzer
• Albert G. Fong
• Juan Chavez
• Karen Cameron
• Cary Lee Swensen
• Mary Angela McNulty
• Jesus Valenzuela
• Christina Guerrero

City officials said that the City Council will hear from all 11 people on why they want to run for the City Council seat. There will be public comment made during the meeting.

The Council is expected to appoint a candidate during their meeting on May 21.

READ MORE: STEVE MCSHANE ANNOUNCES RESIGNATION FROM SALINAS CITY COUNCIL

The seat has been left vacant since Friday when Steve McShane resigned from the City Council after being in the seat for 14 years.

On April 23, the Salinas City Council voted 4-3 to appoint a short-term District 3 council member. That council member would serve until a special election in November.

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