Long Beach City College Trustee Roberto Uranga – husband of current 7th District Councilmember Tonia Reyes Uranga – has announced the suspension of his election campaign to replace his wife in next April’s election (she is termed out). Uranga cited his recent appointment as Vice Chair of the Association of Community College Trustees, a national non-profit organization representing more than 1,200 community colleges across the country. His responsibilities with the ACCT will last until 2012, and Uranga today stressed that he fully intends to run for the 7th District Council seat in 2014.

Uranga will drop out of April’s election race to assume his new position, which will see him serve as Vice Chair, then Chair-elect from 2010-2011, then Chair of the organization in 2011-2012 in successive terms. Rumors have already begun circulating about the possibility of his wife mounting a write-in campaign to reclaim her Council seat. Current contenders for the seat include Jill Hill (president, Wrigley Area Neighborhood Alliance) and James Johnson (current Assistant City Auditor).

Uranga described his new position as “an awesome honor,” and explained that he has mixed feelings about assuming an esteemed national position and consequently dropping out of the district race that he felt very passionately about.

“I have to weigh the political versus what would be the right thing to do. The right thing for me would be to stay as a trustee,” said Uranga, who must not relinquish his position as a trustee in order to hold the new position.

“That was the decision I had to make, and that was the decision that weighed heavily on me. I think I can advance Long Beach and advance Long Beach City College at this level.”

Uranga also expressed support for any decision that his wife makes about her political future.

“I wholeheartedly endorse and support whatever my wife chooses to do,” he said. “If she runs a write-in campaign, I am 102-percent behind her. She’s currently looking into that and I’m sure she’ll have more information soon.”

Uranga said that he made the decision based on kind words of support from fellow trustees across the country. He credits a trustee from Nebraska with influencing his decision.

“He knew that I was running for City Council, and he came up to me and said, ‘You know, we need you here, and I hope you’re able to complete your term here.’ When he said that to me, I was totally humbled by it. I thought, this is probably something that I should do, and is the right thing to do.”

Uranga also expressed excitement at taking the position in the current climate, when the Obama Administration has placed extra emphasis on the importance of community colleges across the nation.

“Community colleges are being looked at as one of the key ingredients to our economic recovery,” he said. “I’m very happy to be where I am.”