It seem that Tito Ortiz has survived in his council position, at least for now.
It looks like Tito Ortiz has been given a stay of execution from the Huntington Beach city council.
The former UFC light heavyweight champion was elected into the position of “mayor pro tem”, and took the spot in December. The position requires Ortiz to step up and take care of mayor Kim Carr’s workload if she is otherwise engaged, and to run council meetings. But Tito has made a mess of the job he just stepped into, clashing with officials about his refusal to wear a mask at meetings and his social media use.
The increasing issues led the council to seek a vote of no confidence to remove Ortiz from the position. However, following a long council meeting last night, they shelved the vote and allowed Tito to stay on. He seemed pleased by the outcome (transcribed by MMA Junkie):
“I want to thank each and every one of you. I apologize if I let anybody down. I think I just let myself down because I went on defensive mode from the very beginning, and I shouldn’t have done that. I will work harder, and I will try not to miss meetings as hard as I possibly can. I do have other jobs to pay my bills, but at the same time, I will do the best job that I know to do.”
The mayor also issued a statement, basically telling him to shape up and tell the truth:
“Here’s your opportunity. Show us what you can do. Show us that you’re in it to win it and that you want to work with us, you want to be a partner, and that I know I can count on you because there is going to be that day I need you, and I want you to be there. So you told me, ‘I’m in it.’ I will trust you, and I have your back, but I cannot have you lying. That is the biggest thing. You cannot lie to our community. You cannot tell half truths. You have to be completely honest and transparent.”
The mayor also made it clear that they could still go forward with a vote of no confidence in the future. This all came about following three hours of the public chiming in on the issue, with some having Ortiz’s back and some calling for his head.
We’ll see if Tito can change his ways and keep in line going forward.