The race is on.
San Diego County Supervisors voted Tuesday to hold a Special Election to fill former Supervisor Nora Vargas’ seat. The district includes the cities of Chula Vista, National City, Imperial Beach and San Diego’s southern neighborhoods.
The county could swear in a new supe by August, or sooner if one candidate gets a majority of the votes in the Primary Election in April.
What’s at stake: South County’s most influential elected officials are already lining up for the fight. The board is currently split with two Democrats and two Republicans, so the direction of the county government is in the hands of South County voters.
Our Jim Hinch has what you need to know about the race ahead in his latest South County Report.
More South County news: Imperial Beach City Council will consider a tenant protection ordinance this week. And prompted by the fires in Los Angeles, the Sweetwater Authority is planning on revewing its fire hydrants, pumping stations and other equipment. Also, there are some big plans in store for a Chula Vista mall.
Read the South County Report here.
Meet the Beat: South County! Hinch will be at the Bonita Museum and Cultural Center on Tuesday, Jan. 28 at 6 p.m. to talk about his stories and what he’s following in South County. The event is free and open to the public. You can get your tickets here.
Imperial County’s Rising Red Tide
For more than 35 years, Imperial County voters overwhelmingly cast their ballots for Democratic presidential candidates. In 2024, that changed. President Donald Trump squeaked out a narrow 500-vote win over Vice President Kamala Harris in the majority Hispanic and working-class Southern California county. That was a 12 percentage point swing from what Trump received in 2020.
The county was one of just 10 in California that switched from red to blue last election cycle. And while some observers cite concerns about rising living costs as a potential cause for the significant swing, others have warned against seeing the shift as a political realignment in the region.
Related: Harris also lost ground in many Southeastern San Diego communities like Chollas Park and Paradise Hills. In total, she received 11,000 fewer votes than President Joe Biden did just four years earlier. Some advocates say perceptions that local leaders had failed to adequately respond in the wake of the devastating January floods led to a further degrading of trust between the communities and elected Democrats.
Read more stories in our Public Matter series here.
Song of the Week
Wild Wild Wets, “The Seer”: The band’s latest full-length, “Love Always,” is another solid entry into its catalog of fuzzy, high-energy psych rock. Standouts like “Say So,” exhibit the Wets’ ability to turn up the hard-edged octane while the plodding The Jesus and Mary Chain-esque “Last Ditch,” finds the band digging into its sentimental, doo-wop bag. “The Seer,” on the other hand, is an upbeat, technicolor earworm of a garage pop track. Read more about the Song of the Week here.
Like what you hear? Check out Wild Wild Wets at Casbah on Wednesday, Jan. 29.
Do you have a “Song of the Week” suggestion? Shoot us an email and a sentence or two about why you’ve been bumping this song lately. Friendly reminder: all songs should be by local artists!
In Other News
- SDG&E has shut power off to 5,620 mostly East County customers and has notified another 49,000 of potential shutoffs as Santa Ana winds have picked up in the region. (Union-Tribune)
- Palomar Health has delayed plans to revise its bylaws after getting hit with criticism from lawmakers who raised concerns about the hospital system’s accountability. (Union-Tribune)
- Officials from the city of San Diego’s traffic engineering team on Monday announced they’re designing fixes for seven intersections stretches of roads that saw the most car accidents that led to injuries or fatalities. (ABC 10)
- Comic-Con will remain in San Diego – at least for now. Mayor Todd Gloria announced on Tuesday that the pop culture extravaganza will continue to be held at downtown’s Convention Center until at least 2027. (City News Service)
The Morning Report was written by Andrea Lopez-Villafaña and Jakob McWhinney. It was edited by Andrea Lopez-Villafaña.