Council Swears in Hernandez to Represent Ward 6, Appoints Interim City Manager

The City Council officially welcomed its newest member on July 7, swearing in Luis Hernandez to represent Ward 6 after certifying the results of the June 2 municipal election—and later, unanimously appointing Edward Enriquez as Riverside's interim city manager.

Hernandez, who won the Ward 6 race outright with more than 50 percent of the vote in the June election, was sworn into office during a special City Council meeting by state Sen. Sabrina Cervantes.

The council first unanimously adopted a resolution certifying the results of the June 2 election, formally declaring Hernandez the winner.

Hernandez was the only City Council candidate elected outright in the June 2 election after receiving just over 50 percent of the vote. The city's other council races will be decided in November.

In Ward 2, Gracie Torres and Aram Ayra advanced to the general election after receiving 37.99 percent and 35.72 percent of the vote, respectively. In Ward 4, incumbent Chuck Conder led the field with 45.63 percent and will face Rich Vandenberg, who received 28.34 percent, in the Nov. 3 runoff.

The ceremony drew a crowded council chamber with supporters celebrating Hernandez's victory.

Several speakers during public comment congratulated Hernandez and characterized his election as an important moment for Ward 6.

Resident Aurora Chavez said she was pleased the ward would have official representation and expressed hope the city would embrace positive changes.

"I'm so happy that Luis Hernandez won," Chavez said. "We have representation now."

Resident Nancy Jimenez described Hernandez as "an amazing steward of goodwill" and said his decisive victory reflected strong community support.

"You got a good one," Jimenez told the council.

Pete Benavidez reflected on Hernandez's years of community involvement and said voters had chosen "a homegrown guy who loves this town, who loves his neighborhood."

After taking the oath of office, Hernandez thanked supporters, volunteers, family members and elected officials who backed his campaign, describing the effort as more than an election.

"This journey wasn't just about a race. It wasn't just about a city council seat," Hernandez said. "...this turned into a movement that brought a lot of people together from different wards, different organizations, unions, community groups [and] leaders who all had a desire to make a positive change here in Riverside."

Hernandez specifically thanked his partner, children, campaign volunteers and local leaders, including Supervisor Jose Medina, Council member Clarissa Cervantes and Sen. Sabrina Cervantes, saying their endorsements helped build momentum for his campaign.

"As the underdog in this race, I couldn't have done it without all of you, without the community," Hernandez said. "You invested a lot of time, energy and more importantly, your trust. And I take that very seriously and will do my best to keep my promises and follow through with everything that we did in the campaign."

Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson welcomed Hernandez to the dais, calling the swearing-in a special occasion for the city.

"We don't get to do that too often, so it's a fun night for us too," the mayor said at the start of the meeting.

Following the ceremony, the council recessed into closed session.

When the meeting reconvened, Council member Chuck Conder announced the council had unanimously appointed Edward Enriquez from acting city manager to interim city manager, effective immediately.

Enriquez had been serving as acting city manager following the departure of former City Manager Mike Futrell, who voluntarily resigned from his position June 16, agreeing to release all claims against the city after conflict between city leaders and his wife, entrepreneur Susan Freeman.