OXNARD : City Employees Back Mayor, 2 Candidates

The Oxnard firefighters and public employees associations have endorsed Mayor Nao Takasugi, Councilman Manuel Lopez and council candidate Paul Chatman in the Nov. 6 election.

Earlier this month, the Oxnard Peace Officers Assn. endorsed the same three candidates. All three organizations have screened or interviewed each candidate in the past two weeks.

Twelve council candidates and six mayoral candidates are running for two council seats and the mayor’s post.

“Mayor Takasugi and Councilman Lopez have always placed public safety at the top of the list and have pledged to continue to do so,” Bill Gallaher, president of the firefighters group, said in a prepared statement. “Mr. Chatman has also stated publicly many times the importance of our public safety departments.”

The public employees union statement said the association supports the candidates because they oppose requiring workers to submit to random drug testing without probable cause.