A sex offender who launched a controversial bid for Fresno City Council failed to get the 20 signatures needed to make the ballot, marking an embarrassing exit for the much-reviled campaign.
Rene Campos requested his candidacy paperwork Friday for a place on the ballot and took the oath of office, calling it “a powerful moment.”
But an elections official said Campos hadn’t yet delivered the signatures required for him to enter the race — and he was nowhere to be seen at the Friday deadline.
In a statement, Campos copped to his inability to secure the 20 signatures.
“To the people of Fresno. Today I was unable to obtain the required nomination signatures before the filing deadline, and I will not appear on the ballot for the Fresno City Council District 7 race,” he said, according to to Fox 26.
“This campaign was a fight. There were attacks, pressure, and moments when standing up meant standing completely alone. But I stood anyway. I fought anyway. Again and again — because the Constitution is not defended when it is easy, it is defended when someone is willing to stand in the storm.”
Campos raised eyebrows when he announced that he would run for political office last month, despite a past charge of possession of child sex abuse material in 2018.
Last week, an elementary school in Fresno filed a police report after he held a press conference just steps away from the grounds.
Until 2015, California law prohibited registered sex offenders from living within 2,000 feet of any school or park in the state.
“That was his 15 minutes of fame,” AJ Rassamni, a candidate for the District 7 seat, told ABC 30.
“Today’s a victory for the people of Fresno,” said another candidate, Nav Gurm.
A third candidate, Ariana Martinez, added: “We will continue to stand against any kind of sexual predator.”
California Assemblywoman Esmeralda Soria, who introduced legislation aimed at banning sex offenders from running for office after Campos announced his campaign, celebrated him dropping out.
“We are relieved to learn that a registered sex offender is no longer running for Fresno City Council. No other community should have to go through this,” she told Fox 26.
“That’s why this news changes nothing in our plans to amend AB 2753 to ensure a registered sex offender is ineligible to run for public office.”
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