Meet Russell Stuart, Candidate For Beverly Hills City Council

BEVERLY HILLS, CA — Russell Stuart, 49, is vying to be elected to the Beverly Hills City Council.

In the June 2 election, voters will choose from a list of 11 candidates running for three council seats. Incumbents Lester Friedman and Sharona R. Nazarian are seeking reelection. The seat currently held by Councilman John Mirisch is open, as Mirisch has reached his term limit.

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Among those running is Stuart.

Learn more about Stuart's goals for Beverly Hills:

What is your educational background?

I studied public safety at West Los Angeles College and completed the Reserve Police Academy at El Camino College.

My education is grounded in public safety, emergency management, and civic leadership.

What is your professional background?

I am an elected Beverly Hills Unified School District Governing Board Member & founder and CEO of Force Protection Agency.

My background spans public safety, executive protection, emergency management, business, media, and community leadership.

Have you ever held public office, whether appointive or elective?

Beverly Hills Unified School District Governing Board Member

What are the top three issues facing Beverly Hills right now?

Beverly Hills faces three urgent issues: public safety, state housing pressure, and the future of our business districts.

Residents need to feel safe in their homes, on our streets, and in our commercial areas.

At the same time, Sacramento’s housing mandates and builder’s remedy projects are putting real pressure on density, infrastructure, traffic, and neighborhood character.

Finally, our business districts need stronger support, fewer vacancies, better permitting, and a serious plan for the Metro D Line opening at Wilshire/La Cienega. Beverly Hills must protect what makes it exceptional while preparing for the future with discipline, public safety, and common sense.

How should Beverly Hills approach state housing mandates while addressing concerns about density, neighborhood character, and infrastructure?

Beverly Hills must comply with the law while aggressively defending local control, neighborhood character, and quality of life. The city should not simply accept one-size-fits-all mandates from Sacramento without pushing for solutions that make sense for Beverly Hills. We need smart planning, not reckless overbuilding.

That means focusing new housing in appropriate areas, especially near transit and commercial corridors, while protecting single-family neighborhoods from projects that are out of scale. The city also needs to require serious infrastructure review, including traffic, parking, public safety, water, sewer, schools, and emergency access. Housing policy cannot be treated as a numbers game alone. It affects real neighborhoods, real families, and real property values.

Builder’s remedy has shown what happens when Sacramento’s mandates collide with local planning. Beverly Hills needs experienced, firm leadership that can fight back where appropriate, comply where legally required, and negotiate from a position of strength. The goal should be housing that is responsible, lawful, and compatible with the character and prestige of Beverly Hills.

What opportunities and challenges do you see with the Metro D Line extension, and how should the city respond?

The Metro D Line extension is one of the biggest changes Beverly Hills has faced in decades. The Wilshire/La Cienega station is scheduled to open on May 8, 2026, connecting Beverly Hills more directly to the regional rail system. That creates opportunity, but only if the city is prepared. Metro says the D Line extension is intended to provide a transit alternative between downtown Los Angeles and the Westside, with two Beverly Hills stops planned.

The opportunity is clear: more visitors, more workers, more customers, less reliance on parking, and a chance to strengthen the southeast part of the city. But the concerns are real too: public safety, homelessness, traffic patterns, cleanliness, loitering, retail vacancies, and whether visitors step off the train into a world-class Beverly Hills experience or an empty street corner.

The city should respond with a full Metro readiness plan: visible police presence, clean sidewalks, lighting, signage, landscaping, business attraction, pedestrian improvements, and a serious plan to make the station area feel safe, active, and worthy of Beverly Hills. We should not fear the Metro, but we also should not be passive. We need to manage it with strength, planning, and standards.

Why are you a better choice than your opponents?

I bring a different level of real-world experience to this race. I am an elected Beverly Hills Unified School District Governing Board member, a business owner, and the founder of Force Protection Agency. My background is in public safety, emergency management, and civic leadership. I understand what it takes to make hard decisions, manage risk, protect people, and lead under pressure.

Beverly Hills is entering a defining period. We are facing public safety concerns, state housing pressure, builder’s remedy projects, business vacancies, and the opening of the Metro D Line. This is not a time for passive leadership or political talking points. It is a time for practical leadership grounded in safety, business strength, and protecting the character of our city.

I am also proud to be endorsed by the Beverly Hills Police Officers Association and the Beverly Hills Firefighters Association. That matters because public safety is not just one issue. It is the foundation for everything else, including strong neighborhoods, thriving businesses, and confidence in the future of Beverly Hills.

I am running to keep Beverly Hills safe, beautiful, business-friendly, and true to the standards residents expect.