Susan Funk, Heather Newsom poised for reelection to Atascadero City Council
Two incumbent Atascadero City Councilmembers are headed to reelection, Election Night returns showed.
As of 1 a.m. Wednesday with all precincts reporting, Councilmembers Heather Newsom and Susan Funk held solid leads over challenger Bret Heinemann, an educator and writer.
Newsom was the top vote-getter at 43.4%, followed closely by Funk with 42.9%. Heinemann was a distant third at 13%.
“I’m honored to be back in my seat serving again,” Newsom told the Tribune on Wednesday.
On Tuesday night, Funk told the Tribune she felt confident about her seat based on the early returns.
“In multiple races I see Atascadero voters favoring a mix of candidates who all share a common dedication to moving our community forward,” Funk told the Tribune.
Newsom said that the Atascadero City Council has an open door policy. “We’re easy to reach,” she said, encouraging community members to “reach out to us with any concerns.”
Newsom said some of her top priorities for the city moving forward are public safety, the homelessness crisis and gaps in child care services. She said the council plans to continue collaborating with state agencies and county government to build solutions to protect first responders and vulnerable populations.
The council has been working on revisions to Atascadero’s 20-year general plan with an eye toward the future of the community.
Newsom said she’s energized by the engagement of high school- and college-age youths who have told the council about what they want Atascadero to look like in the future.
Funk also mentioned the general plan as one of her priorities for the future.
“With a major revision to our city’s 20 year-old General Plan starting up and a newly crafted strategy on homelessness to implement in Atascadero and countywide, my work has just begun,” Funk said in the Tribune voter guide.
The candidates are competing for two four-year seats on the council. Funk and Newsom were both elected in 2018.
“It has been an honor and a privilege to serve this community the past four years, and to be part of a collaborative, constructive and politically diverse City Council whose members work together respectfully to serve the whole community,” Funk said in the Tribune Voter Guide. “With a major revision to our city’s 20 year-old General Plan starting up and a newly crafted strategy on homelessness to implement in Atascadero and countywide, my work has just begun, and I hope that voters will trust me to serve them for another four years.”
Mayor running unopposed in Atascadero
Running unopposed in Atascadero were Mayor Heather Moreno and treasurer Gere Sibbach.
Moreno, a registered Republican, joined the Atascadero City Council as a council member in 2014 and was first elected mayor in 2018. She was reelected mayor during the 2020 election.
“I’m running for re-election because I have the leadership our City needs to navigate the ever-increasing challenges we face and I’m excited about the future of Atascadero,” Moreno told the Tribune.
This story was originally published November 8, 2022 at 8:13 PM.
