Huntington Beach Mayor Pro Tem Tito Ortiz won the first fight of his political career Feb. 1 when a no confidence vote aimed at the rookie politician failed. During a heated debate, Huntington Beach councilmembers discussed whether to strip Ortiz—a mixed martial arts champion—of his mayoral title. Those who spearheaded an agenda item accused proposing to do so accused him of failing to take his job seriously. Numerous members of the public gathered at the city’s civic center to support Ortiz prior to the vote; others spoke both for and against the councilmember during the meeting. Ortiz was sworn into city council last Dec. 7, and garnered the most votes for a Huntington Beach council seat in history with 42,246 votes. Since taking office, he has been criticized by some for refusing to wear a mask during the COVID-19 pandemic. He was also under fire for calling in sick for …