November 21, 2025
Councilmember Jesse Zwick must resign from the Council due to an insurmountable ethical conflict of interest arising from his new paid position as advocate for developers.
As a public official, Councilmember Zwick must avoid even the “appearance of impropriety” in representing the City and serving on the Council, in order to maintain the public trust. To do that, he must avoid actions that call into question his integrity or impartiality.
Councilmember Zwick cannot meet this standard: Each time he votes on an issue involving development – whether it’s relaxing city rules to encourage more development, or supporting greater densification citywide or for downtown, he is supporting the agenda of his new employer – the Housing Action Coalition (HAC). When he uses his title as a City Councilmember to draw potential clients to an event sponsored by HAC, as he recently did on October 12th, he is trading on his public position to advantage his employer’s interests. https://www.instagram.com/p/DPr-2Z2EvWd/
It is impossible for the public to view his actions supporting the myriad of development issues coming before the Council as objective or impartial when he is being paid by HAC to advance its development agenda.
Councilmember Zwick fails to meet the City’s Code of Ethics for city employees. Under it, staff must “maintain objectivity in their decision-making,” be “guardians of the public trust,” “refrain from acts that may bring reproach or discredit to the City,” not “use public resources for private benefit” and “disclose information that may be perceived as a conflict of interest.” https://www.santamonica.gov/code-of-ethics
As an elected official, Councilmember Zwick is held to the highest fiduciary standard - he must avoid conflicts of interest and act in good faith for the public’s best interests, placing those interests above his own.
On August 12th, Councilmember Zwick voted in favor of an ordinance that was supported by HAC. Approximately 2 weeks later he announced his employment as HAC’s new Executive Director for Southern California. If he was in discussions about his new position on August 12th he had an obligation to disclose it and recuse himself. He did neither and the City should investigate this potential conflict. (See SMCLC’s Open Letter, signed by over 400 residents, calling for Mr. Zwick to resign, published in today’s Santa Monica Daily Press. https://www.smclc.net/PDF/SMCLC-Zwick112125.pdf)
Recently, in line with his employer’s interests, Zwick urged the Council to disregard Santa Monica’s law protecting historical properties, a proposal the City Attorney rightly pointed out would invite litigation. HAC is on record opposing landmarking in order to encourage more housing development. This is akin to having HAC on the Council.
Additionally, Councilmember Zwick is required to file timely financial disclosure forms (Form 700) so the public can assess his actions and potential conflicts of interest. According to the FPPC and the City’s websites there is no Form 700 on file for Councilmember Zwick that discloses his new employment with HAC.
