San Bernardino Mayor Helen Tran Vetoes Council Vote to End Mayoral Primaries
5 min read
Photos by Manny Sandoval: San Bernardino City Councilmembers, from left, Sandra Ibarra, Kim Knaus, Theodore Sanchez, Treasure Ortiz, Mayor Helen Tran, Juan Figueroa, Mario Flores and Fred Shorett, listening to public comment during a Feb. 2 special meeting.
A sweeping proposal to restructure San Bernardino’s city government was halted Monday night, Feb. 2nd, after Mayor Helen Tran vetoed a 4–3 City Council vote that would have moved a charter amendment toward the June 2, 2026 ballot.
The last-minute special meeting, held at Feldheym Central Library, drew more than 200 residents who overwhelmingly opposed the proposal, which would have ended the city’s directly elected mayor’s office and replaced it with a mayor chosen from the council. The measure also proposed City Council term limits of three consecutive terms beginning with officials elected in 2026.
Despite hours of public testimony warning against what speakers described as a rushed and anti-democratic process, Mayor Pro Tem Kim Knaus and Councilmembers Theodore Sanchez, Fred Shorett and Juan Figueroa voted to move the measure forward.
Immediately after the vote, Tran vetoed the action.
“And as the at large mayor per the charter, I can veto 4-3, I am vetoing this action. And this is the power of the people. I am exercising the right that you all have called us to do,” Tran said.
Councilmembers Sandra Ibarra, Treasure Ortiz and Mario Flores voted against advancing the ballot measure, aligning with the opposition voiced throughout the meeting.
Tensions escalated during council discussion as Sanchez sought to shift the conversation toward a substitute approach involving the city’s Charter Review Committee and the potential reinstatement of Scott Olsen to the committee.
Best Best & Krieger City Attorney Albert Maldonado clarified the item’s purpose: “Tonight’s proposal is asking for staff direction to work up the charter amendment.”
Sanchez responded, “That would be what I would like to discuss at Wednesday’s [council] meeting.”
Maldonado pressed for clarity, telling Sanchez, “So you want to continue the discussion? And discuss giving staff direction this Wednesday and call another special meeting, there is enough time; since we only need 24 hours to do that.”
Sanchez answered that delaying action could also open the door to committee appointments, “And that would allow the council to also consider the appointment of Scott Olsen to the Charter Committee. If in fact he has been taken off.”
Ortiz rejected that framing, warning it would effectively bypass the Charter Review Committee’s purpose and compress public discussion into an unrealistic timeline.
“It’s completely disingenuous to say that the appointment of Scott Olsen, which won’t be agendized for Wednesday [Feb. 4th], because it has not been brought forward. Your plan is not to convene the Charter Committee, it is to pass these amendments, and so the charter committee is Null and Void by moving forward,” Ortiz said. “So the substitute motion is what allows the charter committee to come forward and give Councilwoman Ibarra adequate time to reinstate her person [to the Charter Committee] at the meeting on Feb. 18th, and move away from putting this on any primary so that we can have proper discussion.”
As the meeting stretched late, Ortiz delivered a final, blistering rebuke aimed at what she described as a continued effort to work around the committee and public opposition.
“That is absolute crap, so you [Sanchez] care nothing about the charter committee moving forward because you don’t need their recommendation, you want to approve it, regardless of the fact that the charter committee was here tonight and 144 people told you not to do this, so what lie? We are 4.5 hours past that point,” Ortiz said. “You don’t care and you think Councilwoman Ibarra is just oblivious to what is going on and that is absolutely rude and disrespectful. You want to move forward regardless of the fact that the community is not educated in what we’re doing and not in favor of it and you’re going to do what you want to do.”
Community speakers repeatedly argued that eliminating the elected mayor would weaken accountability and destabilize regional representation.
Former Councilman Damon Alexander warned that a rotating or council-selected mayor model would not function for a city of San Bernardino’s size and responsibilities.
“There is no way a part time person can run the size of this city,” Alexander said, arguing that the mayor’s office is central to regional boards and the pursuit of grants and projects.
Former Councilwoman Kim Calvin urged residents to remain engaged beyond a single meeting, saying officials “plan on you being reactionary,” and criticized convening a special meeting “at taxpayers expense.”
Business owner David Friedman framed the proposal as power consolidation, not reform.
“What is being proposed here tonight is not about good governance. It’s about control,” Friedman said. “You are taking away our right to vote.”
San Bernardino High School student Andy Fuentes tied the debate to civic trust and what young residents learn about democracy.
“Let’s stop pretending this is harmless reform. This is anti-democratic,” Fuentes said. “I may not have a ballot yet, but I have eyes, I have ears and I have a conscience. And I know that this isn’t right.”
Charter Review Committee member Tim Prince said the proposal sidestepped the charter’s intended process and followed years of inaction on fully restoring the committee’s work.
“Any legitimate proposal goes to the charter review committee,” Prince said. “Your proposal is unvetted. Your proposal is unaccountable.”
City of Adelanto Mayor Gabriel Reyes urged the council to preserve an elected mayor, describing the role as full-time, region-facing leadership that cannot be replicated through a rotating or council-selected model.
“When politics are trying to be played and power is trying to be stolen, those things need to be shut down immediately,” Reyes said.
After Tran’s veto, the council adopted a separate substitute motion introduced by Councilwoman Ortiz and seconded by Councilman Flores directing the city manager to reconvene the Charter Review Committee to discuss concerns raised by councilmembers and the community. The substitute motion passed 5–2, with Sanchez and Shorett voting no.
Tran closed by thanking residents for filling the room.
“Thank you to the people of the city of San Bernardino. You showed up strong, because we work for you,” Tran said. “Tonight the people of San Bernardino were heard and remember that San Bernardino belongs to the people.”
