Incumbents Keep Calabasas Council Seats [Video]

Three Calabasas incumbents kept their three city council seats Tuesday, according to preliminary results.

Mary Sue Maurer led with 2,172 votes, followed by James Bozajian with 2,157 votes, David Shapiro with 1,925 votes and challenger Jody Thomas with 936 votes.

Maurer thanked the voters for their support.

She later Tweeted: "A decisive victory for the three of us and a clear message of staying course."

Bozajian told Calabassa TV "I think the voters gave us a resounding endorsement of approval."

Shapiro said he is ready to continue serving.

"I felt we've all put hard work in, but it was up to the voters," Shapiro said.

Thomas won her home precinct with 98 votes, but it was not enough to unseat the incumbents.

"It's obviously disappointing. Being the only challenger, it was a tough race," Thomas said, adding that she plans to continue working with the city.

First elected to City Council in 2005, this is Maurer’s third term. As a mother of three and a high school teacher at the Westmark School in Encino who won “Teacher of the Year Award” in 2011, Maurer has maintained a strong focus on education, public health and public safety issues with a particularly strong emphasis on senior issues.

This is Bozajian’s fifth term. He has served as mayor of Calabasas four times since first being elected in 1997, making him the longest serving member on the council. Bozajian, a deputy district attorney for the County of Los Angeles, is a graduate of Taft High School in Woodland Hills, has a Juris Doctor from the University of Southern California School of Law and a bachelor of arts degree in history from the University of California, Los Angeles.

This was Shapiro’s first run for City Council after being appointed to his post in January of 2012. Shapiro, a Calabasas attorney, is a board member of the City’s Library Commission and the Agoura Hills/Calabasas Community Center Joint Powers Authority and has served on the Parks and Recreation Commission in the past. 

A self-described "voice for the rural community" as President of Old Topanga Homeowners, Thomas has served on several committees. The mother of a Calabasas High graduate/valedictorian, Thomas was a long-time volunteer both in the Las Virgenes Unified School District and elsewhere in the community. Thomas was endorsed by the Los Angeles County Democratic Party.

The final results will be certified at the March 27 council meeting.