Prang, Duran Snag More Endorsements at WeHo Dems Club

Incumbents Jeff Prang and John Duran easily won the endorsement of the West Hollywood-Beverly Hills Democratic Club on Wednesday night.

Following the recommendation of the club’s endorsement committee, the members voted to support the two in their bid for reelection to the West Hollywood City Council. Members cast 70 votes for Prang and Duran and 9 votes against the pair.

“On behalf of both John and I, we want to thank you all very much for your support this evening,” Prang said after the vote. “This endorsement is very important to both of us. Thank you so much for coming out tonight and sticking by us.”

Prior to the vote, several club members spoke about the proposed endorsement.

Donna Saur, the longtime council deputy to the late councilmember Sal Guarriello, praised them.

“I was a council deputy for approximately 12 years,” Saur said. “I worked with Jeff Prang and his office and John Duran and his office. I’m here to tell you that they are very honest people. They are here to help the community. John Duran with his background in civil rights, why would we want to vote for anyone else other than John Duran? He’s a wonderful community person and Jeff Prang is so dedicated.”

Longtime resident Heidi Shink called them both “deeply committed Democrats” who are “progressive.”

“They are pragmatic about getting policy passed,” Shink said. “Jeff and John have made transportation, parking and safety their priorities. They advocate strongly for seniors, the LGBT community and for women’s services. Weho is fiscally sound and at the same time, it is truly a great place to live.”

Resident Shelia Lightfoot was the only person to speak against the endorsement.

“If the city is so well managed, why in our last budget process was the budget all put together and they said we need another $1 million for sheriffs and security, and to do that we need to extend the parking meter hours to pay for it?” Lightfoot said. “That is no way to run the city budget in a city that is supposedly flush with money.”