Yorba Linda City Council race: two Republicans, one Democrat; Yorba Linda Water District race: Kileys oppose incumbents in Nov. 6 balloting

Yorba Linda voters will see two intriguing match-ups on the Nov. 6 general election ballot – two staunch Republicans and an active Democrat seeking two City Council positions and a recalled water district director and his wife running against three water board incumbents.

Council positions are nominally non-partisan, but the county's two major official party organizations, the Republican and Democratic central committees, endorse selected candidates, in part to build a bench of potential future contenders for partisan offices.

Candidates who receive party endorsements publicize the support in advertisements, mailings, roadway signage, automated telephone calls and on social media platforms.

Expected to receive the GOP endorsements are Peggy Huang, who begins her quest for a second term with $24,550 in her campaign kitty, as of June 30, and Carlos Rodriguez, who already has been endorsed by the five sitting council members, all Republicans.

Huang, a state deputy attorney general, was the top vote-getter in 2014. The 15-year city resident has been an elected county GOP committee member since 2012, representing Republicans in Brea, La Habra, Placentia and Yorba Linda.

Rodriguez, a 10-year resident, was appointed by the council to the Parks and Recreation Commission last year. He is chief executive officer for the Baldy View chapter of Building Industry Association of Southern California and serves on the endorsement committee of Yorba Linda's chapter of the California Republican Assembly.

Lourdes Cruz, a 25-year resident who attended local schools, is an Orange County budget and contract monitor and part-time anthropology department professor at Fullerton College. She is the local Richard Nixon American Legion auxiliary's Girls' State chair, county Democratic committee alternate member and Orange County Labor Federation delegate.

Tom Lindsey is retiring after two terms. He placed second out of six contenders for two seats in 2010 and 2014 and survived a 2014 recall election with a 59 percent vote against removal from office. He lost a 2000 council contest, placing eighth out of 10 candidates for three seats.

At last count, Yorba Linda had 40,871 registered voters: 21,267 Republicans (52 percent); 9,109 Democrats (22.3 percent); 8,976 no party preference (22 percent); and 1,519 minor parties (3.7 percent).

In the Yorba Linda Water District, former director Robert Kiley, who beat an incumbent when he was elected to the board in 2010 and was recalled in 2016, and his wife, Barbara, who served two council terms from 1992 to 2000, are running against incumbent directors Phil Hawkins, Brooke Jones and Al Nederhood.

In a controversy regarding increased water fees due to drought conditions, Robert Kiley was recalled by 71 percent of the vote and replaced by Jones. Nederhood replaced Gary Melton, who was recalled by 70 percent. Hawkins has served since first appointed to the board in 2010.