The results of Tuesday’s Primary election are (slowly) coming in, and so far, there are a few races affecting North County showing strong early results.
More than 500,000 ballots have been counted so far, according to the San Diego County Registrar, but there are roughly 375,000 ballots still outstanding.
Here’s where the races in North County stand now. Keep in mind, these early results could change as more votes get counted.
Rebecca Jones Sweeps County Supe Race
San Marcos Mayor Rebecca Jones is likely headed to the runoff in the race for District 5 County Supervisor, early results show.
Who: Jones and Vista Mayor John Franklin, both Republicans, are running for the seat currently held by Jim Desmond, who is termed out. Democrat Kyle Krahel (the former chair of the county Democratic party) is also a top candidate. Other contenders are Democrat Norma Contreras, who is the former chair of the La Jolla Band of Luiseno Indians, and Sasha Miller, an independent endorsed by the Green Party. The top two vote getters in the Primary will advance to the General Election.
What’s at stake: For Democrats, this race is a chance to establish a supermajority on the County Board of Supervisors for the first time ever. And for Republicans, the race took on another meaning, becoming a litmus test for which Republican group has more pull in the region: the San Diego County Republican Party or Carl DeMaio and his political action machine Reform California.
The local party didn’t make any official endorsements this year, but DeMaio endorsed Jones, despite most of the local party members favoring Franklin.
What early results are showing: It turns out, DeMaio may have picked a winner, but it’s still too close to tell whether Jones will face Krahel or Franklin in November.
- Jones has so far swept the Primary receiving 41 percent of votes (almost 39,000 votes).
- Krahel is in second place with 20 percent of votes (almost 19,000 votes).
- Franklin is close behind with 19.5 percent of votes (around 18,500 votes).
District 5 includes Escondido, Oceanside, San Marcos, Vista, as well as several unincorporated communities including Borrego Springs, Fallbrook, Valley Center and more.
Related: Want to hear from District 5 voters about how they voted on Tuesday? Read Voices of the Voters here.
Desmond Takes Early Lead in 48th Race
Speaking of termed out County Supervisor Jim Desmond, it looks like he’s headed to a runoff against San Diego City Councilmember Marni von Wilpert for the 48th Congressional District seat.
Von Wilpert is one of the several Democrats who took a swing at replacing Rep. Darrell Issa, a Republican who currently holds the seat but is not running for re-election.
Who: Last year, voters passed Gov. Gavin Newsom’s redistricting measure, Proposition 50, creating five new, Democrat-leaning congressional districts, including the 48th. Several Democrats jumped into the primary eyeing a chance to flip the seat, including von Wilpert, Ammar Campa-Najjar (who lost the seat to Issa in 2020), Palm Springs economist Brandon Riker, Vista City Councilmember Corinna Contreras and more.
In April, seeing his chances for re-election dwindling, Issa dropped out of the race and tapped Desmond, also a Republican, to run instead. Desmond was widely expected to make it to the runoff in November, but results of the Primary will determine who he will go up against.
What’s at stake: At stake is a congressional seat that could determine if the House of Representatives enters the next two years of the Trump administration with a Republican or Democratic majority.
What early results are showing: As predicted, Desmond has been dominating the polls so far in San Diego County, and von Wilpert has a strong lead over the other Dems:
- Desmond has so far received 46 percent of votes (around 25,000 votes).
- Von Wilpert has received 20 percent of votes (almost 11,000 votes).
- Campa-Najjar has around 11 percent of votes (around 6,000 votes.)
- Contreras follows with almost 7 percent of votes (around 3,700 votes).
In Riverside County, Desmond is also leading with 37 percent of the votes, followed by von Wilpert with 19 percent and Republican Kevin Patrick O’Neill coming in third with 11 percent of votes so far.
The 48th District includes portions of both San Diego and Riverside counties.
Related: I talked to voters in the district yesterday about how they felt about the race. Read Voices of the Voters here.
Mara Elliot Leading in State Senate Race
Democrat and former San Diego City Attorney Mara Elliott is leading in the race for the 40th Senate District.
Who: Elliot, former state Assembly candidate Kristie Bruce-Lane and San Marcos City Councilmember Ed Musgrove, both Republicans, are hoping to replace termed-out Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones, also a Republican.
Bruce-Lane is endorsed by DeMaio and Reform California.
What’s at stake: This district is historically a swing district and has flipped back and forth between Republican and Democratic representatives over the past several years. If Elliot keeps her lead and ends up winning the General Election in November, the district will, once again, flip from Republican-led to Democrat.
What early results are showing: Elliot will likely head to the runoff in November; the rest of the Primary results will determine which Republican she will face.
- Elliot has 44 percent of the votes (almost 70,000 votes).
- Bruce-Lane has 30 percent of the votes (around 47,500 votes).
- Musgrove has almost 26 percent of the votes so far (around 41,000 votes).
The district covers a large chunk of the county including San Marcos, Escondido, Poway, Fallbrook and more, as well as northern neighborhoods in the city of San Diego.
In Other Election News
- Poway District 2 residents also voted in a special election to fill the City Council seat left vacant by embattled former Councilmember Tony Blain. So far, Anita Edmondson has taken the lead over Vanessa Springett. Edmondson has 55 percent of the votes so far, leading by 10 percentage points over Springett, who had 45 percent of the votes. (Union-Tribune) Related: You can read more about Blain’s short, but controversial, time in office here.
- Voters in Carlsbad, Oceanside and Vista overwhelmingly approved Measure H, which asked voters to approve leasing Tri-City Medical Center to Sharp HealthCare for 30 years. So far, 92 percent voted in favor of Measure H, or nearly 63,000 voters. (Union-Tribune)
- Incumbent Rep. Mike Levin (D) took an early and wide lead over Republican Armen Kurdian in the race for the 49th Congressional District. Levin so far has 54 percent of the votes (60,000 votes) and Kurdian has 28 percent of the votes (31,000). Kurdian has a strong lead over the other Republican candidate, Star Parker, and will likely face Levin in the General Election. (sdvote.org)
- In the 50th Congressional District, which includes parts of inland North County, incumbent Rep. Scott Peters (D) is leading so far, but Republican challenger Steve Cohen, a former KUSI news director, is close behind. (sdvote.org)