27-year-old Skylar Peak would be the youngest candidate ever to serve on city council. Missy Zeitsoff, a member of the inaugural Malibu City Council, also officially pulls papers.
By Homaira Shifa / Special to The Malibu Times
The race for Malibu City Council took another step forward as two new candidates, Skylar Peak and Missy Zeitsoff, officially pulled nomination papers. Peak, 27, is a third-generation Malibuite while Zeitsoff was a member of Malibu’s first city council.
Peak pulled nomination papers last week. Born and raised on Point Dume, Peak said he is actively working on his campaign plans.
“I want to try and get the younger generation to vote,” Peak said. “I want people to recognize that I’m open-minded and will emphasize solutions.”
Peak is a part-time lifeguard with the local fire department, works as an electrician with his family business, is an avid surfer, a board member of the local boys and girls club, and a Parks and Recreation Commissioner.
Peak graduated from Malibu High School and Pepperdine University. He wanted to run for city council in the past, but the sudden death of his father left him looking after his mother and two sisters.
“I talked about it to my family over the holidays and decided to run,” Peak said. “I’m hoping for more transparency in our community.”
In June 2008, Peak and another Malibu resident were charged with misdemeanor battery when they tried to stop paparazzi photographers from taking photos of actor Matthew McConaughey on a local beach. It started with verbal insults against each other, which then turned to physical confrontation at Little Dume Beach. Charges were eventually dropped.
Zeitsoff pulled papers Tuesday. She was elected in 1990 to the inaugural city council, beating sixth-place finisher John Merrick by just five votes. Zeitsoff served on the council for two years, losing in what would be a brutal 1992 election rife with mudslinging.
Another candidate in that race, Joan House, has pulled nomination papers for this one.
Candidates have until Jan. 18 to fill out their nomination packets and return it to City Hall.
Andy Lyon submitted his nomination packet last week, making him the first and only official candidate right now in the City Council campaign. He returned the completed packet with at least 20 signatures from registered Malibu voters, qualifying him for the ballot.
Jefferson Wagner, John Sibert, Joan House and Hamish Patterson have also picked up nomination papers. Incumbents Wagner and Sibert have until Jan. 13 to return the packet, while House and Patterson have until Jan. 18.
The most candidates running for City Council since 1992 was in 2010, when nine men and one woman were running. The candidates were Ed Gillespie, Harold Greene, Matthew Katz, Kofi, Lou La Monte, John Mazza, Laura Rosenthal, Steve Scheinkman, Mike Sidley and Jan Swift.
It was the first time since Malibu voters selected members for the city’s initial governing body in 1990 that the electorate didn’t have incumbents among the choices to fill two seats on the Malibu City Council.
Rosenthal raised the most money amongst all candidates that year for her campaign. She raised $28,000 and spent $21,648. Scheinkman spent the most at $29,475 and raised $14,335. Mazza raised $15,899 and spent $22,260. La Monte raised $24,868 and spent $19,886. Sidley raised $14,624 and spent $23,593; Katz spent $2,419 of his own money; Kofi loaned his campaign $5,775 and spent $4,955 of it. Greene raised $3,448 and spent $24,825; Gillespie raised $8,230 and spent $6,598.
La Monte and Rosenthal won the elections in 2010 and filled the two open city council seats. Rosenthal was the most popular candidate, receiving a total of 1,734 votes. La Monte, who got 1,324 votes, beat rival John Mazza by 70 votes. Mazza’s running mate, Steve Scheinkman, received 1,152 votes.
In 2008, there were five candidates in the City Council race to fill three seats. The candidates were Pamela Conley Ulich, John Sibert, Susan Tellem, Kathy Wisnicki and Jefferson Wagner.
Ulich won the most votes and was elected to a second term on the council with 2,127 votes. Wagner placed second with 1,695 votes and Sibert placed third with 1,422 votes. Kathy Wisnicki placed a very close fourth place with 1,398 votes. Susan Tellem was fifth place and received 1,167 votes.