Bell Gardens Councilmember Jorgel Chavez to run for water board
Bell Gardens Councilmember Jorgel Chavez made some waves on Aug. 18, announcing that he will challenge a longtime incumbent for a seat on the Water Replenishment District of Southern California Board of Directors.
If successful, the 29-year-old councilmember, who previously served as the city’s mayor, would leave his council seat two years early.
Chavez said water is an issue people often take for granted despite its importance.
“There is a great opportunity for me to step into this new realm and learn, educate, and represent,” Chavez said in a phone interview.
The Water Replenishment District (WRD) manages groundwater for about four million people across 420 square miles of Los Angeles County. Groundwater—water stored underground in layers of soil and rock called aquifers—provides nearly half of the water used in the area.
Cities and water companies pump groundwater through wells to serve homes and businesses. WRD helps replace, or “replenish,” that water using recycled water and captured stormwater, monitors groundwater levels, tests for pollution, and helps oversee pumping rules. Five elected directors set policy, approve spending and major projects, and make decisions about how the region’s groundwater is managed.
Chavez said he hopes to use the position to help bring funding to Southeast Los Angeles for projects that combine parks and green space with stormwater capture, similar to the underground cistern at Ford Park that he supported while on the Bell Gardens City Council.
In his campaign announcement, Chavez focused on making the little-known water board more visible to residents.
“The question is, do you even know who your water representative is?” Chavez said. “Most people don't. So let's change that.”
Chavez is challenging Division 4 Director Sergio Calderon, who was first elected in 2006 and is seeking his sixth term.
Chavez pointed to Calderon’s nearly two decades in office in making the case for a change.
“You know where I was in 2006?” Chavez said. “I was in Bandini Elementary School… in third grade.”
“Sometimes there needs to be change, and with change comes new leadership, new ideas, new initiative and, ideally, new, better representation,” he added.
Chavez has already picked up over 40 endorsements from labor groups and elected officials across the region, including Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn, state Sen. Lena Gonzalez, and Bell Gardens Mayor Miguel De La Rosa, according to his campaign website.
“I’m endorsing him for WRD,” De La Rosa said, adding that Chavez can bring his firsthand experience in Bell Gardens to the regional level.
“Jorgel has seen how Bell Gardens has firsthand been impacted through water (issues), and I think he's able to apply that (experience) in the region as a whole,” De La Rosa said.
If Chavez wins the WRD race, he would have to give up his Bell Gardens council seat because he cannot legally serve in both positions at the same time. The remaining councilmembers would then have 60 days to appoint his replacement or call a special election. Because the vacancy would occur in the second half of Chavez’s term, an appointed replacement could serve through 2028.
De La Rosa added that he has not taken a position on whether to hold a special election or appoint a replacement. When Councilmember Alejandra Cortez abruptly resigned in 2023, less than a year into her second term, the council appointed Gabriela Gomez to temporarily fill her seat. Voters then elected Miguel De La Rosa in 2024 to serve the final two years of Cortez’s term.
For Chavez, winning would mean expanding his representation beyond his hometown to communities across Southeast Los Angeles.
“It would be an honor to represent these communities,” Chavez said. “I’ve always taken a lot of pride, being from Bell Gardens, but to be able to also represent Maywood, a city that I lived in, Huntington Park, another city that I lived in, Lynwood, and Bell. To be an official (representative) for all these cities, it’ll definitely be a moment for me to take a lot of pride in.”
“I’m not just speaking on behalf of the city of Bell Gardens, but I’m speaking for the region,” he added.
During his time on the council, Chavez has taken positions on some of BG’s most contentious issues. As a newly elected councilmember, he was a vocal supporter of capping annual rent increases for most apartments in Bell Gardens. He has consistently opposed permits for retail cannabis businesses in the city, and amid a wave of ICE raids last summer, Chavez posted videos of himself confronting federal immigration agents.
More recently, on June 8, Chavez voted against moving forward with the proposed sale of Bell Gardens’ water system to Golden State Water Company, a private utility that already provides water to most Bell Gardens residents. The city-owned system currently serves about one-third of the city’s residents.
City staff recommended selling the system to Golden State for $41 million. Staff said the city’s water system faces financial challenges from aging infrastructure, needed upgrades, regulatory costs, and debt. The proposed deal would include the city’s water system and its water rights. Voters must approve the sale before it can move forward.
During the council discussion, concerns were raised about giving up local control of the city’s water system and turning it over to a private company. Chavez and Councilmember Marco Barcena voted no, while the other three councilmembers voted yes. The proposal passed 3-2 and will go before voters in November.
“We had a choice of whether or not to sell a public asset, and for me, it’s always about putting the residents and ratepayers first,” Chavez said. “I felt that this shouldn’t have been the only choice. I think we could have done more, and I didn’t feel comfortable moving forward and putting this on the ballot.”
Golden State also has a direct connection to the agency Chavez is now seeking to join. The company pumps groundwater from WRD-managed basins and pays the agency a replenishment assessment based on how much groundwater it pumps. That means decisions made by the WRD board can directly affect water companies such as Golden State.
The WRD seat currently comes with substantially higher compensation than Chavez’s current council position. Calderon received $81,739 in total pay and benefits in 2024, compared with just $33,241 for Chavez’s service on the Bell Gardens City Council that year, according to Transparent California, a public database that tracks pay and benefits for government employees and officials across the state.
The race also includes Samuel A. Peña, who, like Calderon, previously served on the Maywood City Council. Calderon resigned from the council in 2008 after prosecutors sued to remove him for also serving on the WRD board. He returned years later, but resigned again in 2017 after prosecutors sued him a second time for illegally holding both seats.
The Division 4 race will be decided in the Nov. 3 general election. Registered voters who live within Division 4 can vote in the race. The district includes all or parts of Bell, Bell Gardens, Commerce, Cudahy, East Los Angeles, Florence-Graham, Huntington Park, Los Angeles, Lynwood, Maywood, Montebello, Monterey Park, Pico Rivera, South Gate, Vernon, Walnut Park and Willowbrook.
The regular voter registration deadline is Oct. 19, though eligible residents can still conditionally register and vote through Election Day on Nov. 3.
