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Windsor Town Council poised to replace Dominic Foppoli as mayor, address his resignation letter

The Press Democrat - 6/2/2021

Jun. 1—The Windsor Town Council will begin restructuring itself Wednesday in the wake of Dominic Foppoli's resignation as mayor amid public claims of sexual assault, abuse or harassment made against him by nine women.

The council's regular 6 p.m. meeting is its first since Foppoli's May 24 resignation, a move that every fellow incumbent and most elected officials in Sonoma County had called for long ago. The council intends to briefly acknowledge Foppoli's departure at the beginning of the session, before addressing how to fill his vacant post.

The council will first choose whether to appoint a new mayor or hold a special election for the at-large seat, an option that would result in the town's second special election of the year.

The council can choose to appoint a new mayor from the general public but it appears more likely to advance an appointee from within its own ranks. If so, it will then need to fill the vacated council seat.

The incumbents include council veterans Sam Salmon and Deb Fudge, newcomer Rosa Reynoza and Esther Lemus, who herself has accused Foppoli of sexual crimes.

If the group chooses to fill a council vacancy by appointment, it could open up an application process to the general public or appoint one of the runners up in the May special election. Reynoza, the runner-up in last year's inaugural mayor contest, won that special election, which was held to fill Foppoli's vacant council seat.

The second place finisher in May contest was Oscar Chavez, a top county government administrator with broad political support.

Foppoli announced he would step down May 21 and officially did so on May 24, after detectives in Palm Beach, Florida opened an investigation into an allegation of sexual battery brought by former reality television personality Farrah Abraham. She was the ninth woman to publicly accuse Foppoli of assault, battery, rape or sexual misconduct.

Town officials have voiced hope that they can now move on from the Foppoli scandal, even as law enforcement investigations into the allegations play out in Sonoma County and Palm Beach.

The California Fair Political Practices Commission also is weighing its own investigation into an anonymous complaint about both Foppoli's campaign spending and fundraising.

You can reach Staff Writer Andrew Graham at 707-526-8667 or andrew.graham@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @AndrewGraham88

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