First, the obvious: Alcoholism is no joke. Addiction is no joke. And Anaheim Mayor Ashleigh Aitken saying she struggles with a drinking problem, and that she checked herself into rehab last year … well, I hope everything works out for her.
Truly.
That being said …
This doesn’t end well, and Aitken is probably the only local political figure who doesn’t see it.
She should resign.
In case you haven’t followed the news (Voice of OC has done outstanding work), Berenice Ballinas, Aiken’s former chief of staff, filed a 25-page claim of her ex-boss’ misdeeds, including comments that were both sexually and racially inappropriate, as well as myriad sagas of awful drunkenness.
The mayor initially denied everything, then later responded with a lengthy Instagram post. Here’s what she wrote:
This week has been incredibly humbling, and caused me to reflect on balancing my privacy with my public life. About a year and a half ago, in June of 2025, I left a conference early to check myself in to the Betty Ford Center. I realized I had an unhealthy relationship with alcohol, and needed help managing the stress and responsibilities in my life. I spent 30 days beginning a new journey of hope and recovery. Every sober journey gets rocky, and I hit a bump this past June and drank at a birthday event. I disappointed myself and committed to start again. I share this because I’m not going to pretend that part of my life didn’t happen simply because it is now uncomfortable for me to speak of or politically damaging to acknowledge it. I am proud that I asked for help, grateful to the people who helped me, and committed to continuing my recovery.
None of that excuses excessive alcohol consumption at conferences or locally. But accepting responsibility for my alcohol consumption does not equate to the more serious allegations that have been made against me. I have denied the slurs attributed to me, and I stand by that denial.
I welcome the independent investigation and will cooperate truthfully. Where I made mistakes, I will own them. As to other allegations, I trust the evidence will bear out the truth.
I had hoped to share this on my own terms, but life had different plans for me. I regret not believing that my Anaheim community would support me, and should have given people the chance to offer their wisdom and support.
I am not perfect. My recovery is not a straight line. I apologize to anyone burdened by my drinking, especially my family. They all deserved better from me. I vow to continue the journey and be a better leader for Anaheim.
•••
Aaaaaaannnnnnnndddd … I dunno.
The I-drank-to-excess-but-never-called-my-aide-a-dirty-Mexican narrative just doesn’t work here. If you had a drinking problem while serving as mayor, it seems certainly possible that you were saying things you shouldn’t have. That’s sorta kinda definitely what being drunk can do to a person.
This then leads to 100,000 more questions than answers; questions that Aitken likely can’t (or won’t) answer.
• Were you drunk during official government functions?
• If so, when/where? How often?
• If so, how did it impact your decision making?
• Why would a fairly anonymous aide lie about this?
• Why would a fairly experienced aide (with no noted history of lying/alarmism) lie about this?
Ballinas filed a 25-page claim against the mayor and the city. You can read it here, but here are a few of the notables. It’s damning …
•••
For me, this all comes down to the Charles de Gaulle quote, “The graveyards are filled with irreplaceable men.”
Or, in modern terms, a whole lotta people can be mayor of Anaheim. It’s a hard job, no doubt. But not that hard. There were 46 mayors before Aitken came along, including such notables as (scratches head) Charles Rust, Rector Coons (an insanely good band name) and Cal Pebley. I’m guessing I could do it, you could do it, the woman over there could do it, the dude slicing your pizza could do it. Yes, we’d need people like Berenice Ballinas to help, but … Ashleigh Aitken is hardly the lone superstar in a city of 350,000 folks.
As of now, she’s just a distraction and, sadly, an embarrassment.
She needs to step aside.
What a sad chapter in Anaheim's story and a sadder chapter for Wylie Aitken's family.
I don’t believe in “guilty by accusation” and I’m surprised that you are engaging in it. Just because someone makes an accusation in a lawsuit seeking financial gain does not automatically mean they are telling the entire truth. There needs to be an independent investigation as well as testimony under oath.