HUNTINGTON CIVIC CENTER with voting drop box in foreground (OC Tribune photo).

By Jim Tortolano
Orange County Tribune

The latest results of the voting on Measures A and B before Huntington Beach voters confirmed what early returns indicated: the city council’s actions regarding the municipal library system were not popular.

According to the Orange County Registrar of Voters, as of 5 p.m. on Friday, two voter-initiated measures A & B were each winning by wide margins despite opposition by members of the city council.

Measure A was winning by 58.41 percent (34,750 votes) voting yes to 41.59 percent (24,748 no votes).

Measure B was winning a larger margin, with 60.55 percent (35,993) yes to 39.45 percent (23,455 no votes) opposed.

A called for an end to the “Parent-community review board” that screened which books would be added to the library and whether they would be in the children’s section or otherwise.

B requires that the city’s library system wouldn’t be “privatized,” as in operated by a for-profit private company unless approved by a vote of the public. That’s something which was considered for a while by the council, before finally being rejected.

A possible flashpoint in the campaign was the council approving the placing of a plaque with the acrostic MAGA – generally recognized as President Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again”slogan – in the Central Library.

Defenders on the council said it stood for “Magical Alluring Galvanizing Adventurous.”