8) San Diego City Elections
With most of the attention in San Diego devoted to the Chargers’ stadium measure, voters may be surprised that most city elections have already been decided. Of the five city council seats up for term this year, only one will actually come down to a vote in November. However, voters will have an opportunity to remedy the “election loophole” through Measures K & L. A competitive race between two Latino Democrats is featured in the District 9 city council race, but the City Attorney’s race is the only citywide race on the ballot this year.
The Candidates:
City Attorney:
-Robert Hickey, Deputy District Attorney
-Mara Elliott, Deputy City Attorney
City Council:
District 1:
-Barbara Bry
-Ray Ellis**
**Ellis officially dropped out in August but the candidates will still appear on the ballot and Bry is continuing to campaign.
District 3:
-Chris Ward won in the June primary
District 5:
-Mark Kersey won in the June primary.
District 7:
-Scott Sherman won in the June primary.
District 9:
-Georgette Gomez, Associate Director of Environmental Health Coalition
-Ricardo Flores, Chief of Staff to District 9 councilwoman Marti Emerald
The Numbers:
Total Voters City Wide: 667,254 (42% Dem., 25% Rep., 32% Indep.)
District 9: 57,149 (50% Dem., 14% Rep., 33% Indep.)
What and who are we watching?
City Council
Currently, Democrats hold a 5-4 majority in the San Diego City Council. Before the June primary some observers believed that Republicans might be able to flip that balance and give Mayor Kevin Faulconer greater leeway. These hopes never materialized partly due to Democrats’ demographic advantage in the city and partly due to an elections system that has resulted in very few races making it onto the November ballot. Currently, any candidate that achieves greater than 50% of the vote in the primary is automatically elected. In the last 36 elections, 19 were decided in June when turnout is nearly half of November general elections. Two measures will appear on the ballot in November that seek to remedy the situation. Measure K would require a November runoff between the top two candidates in races for City Council, City Attorney, and Mayor. Measure L would require all initiatives and referenda to be placed on the November ballot. Support for the measures has fallen on partisan lines with Dems in support and Republicans (including the current Mayor) against. (KPBS) Some opponents of the measures have suggested implementing a rank choice voting model similar to San Francisco and Berkeley, but that discussion will have to wait for another day.
While San Diegans wait to weigh in on a change to the election process, supporters of a change can point to the limited number of runoffs on this year’s ballot. Races for council seats in Districts 3, 5 and 7 have already been decided due to candidates achieving the 50% plus mark. The only two races that will appear on the ballot are for Districts 1 and 9, and only District 9 is a legitimate race. The reason for that is that while he qualified for a runoff against Democrat Barbara Bry, Republican Ray Ellis officially dropped out of the District 1 race in early August. Mr. Ellis, who came in 15% behind Ms. Bry despite outraising and outspending her, determined that bridging the gap would be impossible due to expected increased Democratic turnout for the Presidential vote. Due to the fact that Mr. Ellis’ name will still appear on the ballot, Ms. Bry has continued to campaign but only as a formality. (KPBS)
The only competitive council race on the ballot is in District 9, which features two Latino Democrats facing off against each other. The neighborhoods that comprise District 9 are diverse, consisting of upper class communities in the north such as Kensington and more middle-to-lower class areas such as City Heights in the southern part of the district. The two candidates vying for the council seat are current councilwoman Marti Emerald’s Chief of Staff Ricardo Flores and community activist Georgette Gomez.
Mr. Flores spent part of his youth in the City Heights neighborhood before attending UCLA. He is a current resident of the upscale Kensington neighborhood. Prior to working for Ms. Emerald, he worked on the staff of Congresswoman Susan Davis. Mr. Flores is considered more of a mainstream Democrat and due to his work within City Hall, the “establishment” candidate. He has touted his ability to navigate the intricacies of City Hall as his primary qualification for office. Along with Susan Davis and Marti Emerald, he has received endorsements from a number of established politicos including Congressman Juan Vargas and State Senators Ben Hueso and Marty Block. (Flores)
In contrast to Mr. Flores, Georgette Gomez has promised to “shake up City Hall” and has characterized her campaign as a grassroots effort. Ms. Gomez, a member of the LGBT community, is a current member of the City Heights Community Planning Group and grew up in the infamous Barrio Logan. Ms. Gomez is running her campaign on the issues of neighborhood safety, affordable housing, improved infrastructure and highlighting the intimate connection she has with poorer residents through her work on a variety of community groups. She is endorsed by current councilmembers Todd Gloria and David Alvarez, former councilmember Donna Frye, the Sierra Club and the AFL-CIO. Interestingly enough, Ms. Gomez has also earned the endorsement of the San Diego County Democratic Party that had endorsed Mr. Flores during the primary. (Gomez)
Mr. Flores came in first in the primary by roughly 5%, but the race has tightened since. (Ballotpedia). Re-enforcing the perception that he is the establishment candidate is the sizable money advantage that Mr. Flores has over Ms. Gomez and, more specifically, where that money is coming from. While both candidates have received the same amount from the local Democratic Party ($10,300), Mr. Flores has raised almost $100,000 from organizations affiliated with the SD Chamber of Commerce and leads in fundraising $182,000 to $65,000. (Voice of SD)
City Attorney Race:
After Mayor Faulconer’s victory in the June primary, the race for City Attorney is the only citywide race on this year’s ballot. The race also features the only head-to-head between a Democrat and Republican. Deputy District Attorney Robert Hickey and Deputy City Attorney Mara Elliott were the top-two vote getters in a five-way race in the June Primary. Hickey was the only Republican in the race and led with 29% of the vote. The four Democratic contenders split the remaining 71%, with Mrs. Elliott securing 24% of the vote.
Mr. Hickey has served as a Deputy DA for 19 years and is a lifelong resident of San Diego. He has made his bones prosecuting gang cases and has made expanding supportive services and recovery programs for criminal offenses an emphasis of his campaign. Mr. Hickey has been endorsed by Mayor Faulconer, Sheriff Bill Gore, the San Diego Police Officers Association, and District Attorney Bonnie Dumais. (IVN)
Mara Elliott has served as the Chief Deputy City Attorney since 2009. If elected, she would be the first female City Attorney in the city’s history. Her campaign is focused on expanding San Diego’s Neighborhood Prosecutor Program, enhancing protection of victims of domestic, child and elder abuse, and enforcing fair wage laws. Former City Attorney John Witt, councilmembers Marti Emerald, Todd Gloria, and David Alvarez, as well as primary opponents Gil Cabrera and Bryan Pease have endorsed Mrs. Elliott. (IVN)