PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID ENCINITAS, CA 92024 PERMIT NO. 94
THE COAST NEWS
.com SERVING NORTH COUNTY SINCE 1987
VOL. 32, N0. 23
JUNE 8, 2018
SURVIVING THE ‘JUNGLE’ .com SAN MARCOS -NEWS
Desmond rolls to win THE VISTA District 5 NEWS
Harkey, Levin showdown likely in 49th
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Applegate, Jacobs edged out for Dems
Gomez, Kern still battling for second
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By Steve Puterski
GOP’s Chavez, Gaspar tumble out of race By Aaron Burgin
REGION — A Republican and a Democrat will vie for the 49th Congressional District seat in November after weeks of speculation that Democrats might fall victim to California’s “top two” primary system. Republican Diane Harkey emerged as the top vote-getter after the June 5 primary election in the race to replace Darrell Issa, who did not seek re-election. The State Board of Equalization member will likely face Orange County environmental attorney Mike Levin, who leads Sara Jacobs and Doug Applegate with thousands of ballots remaining to be counted. Harkey, speaking to reporters Tuesday night, said she was optimistic about her chances of moving on after the final vote is tallied. “I am really pleased (with the early results),” Harkey said. “I am hoping they continue but I think they will.” Although Levin has claimed victory in a speech Tuesday night to supporters, Jacobs has yet to concede. “We were thrilled with several things last night,” Levin said. “One, obviously, was the turnout in general for Democrats, which was terrific. It was an effort not only of our campaign and the other campaigns, but also the independent groups such as Flip the 49th and Indivisible, which ensured that Democrats who only vote in presidential years TURN TO 49TH ON A3
REGION — From four to two, the race for the District 5 seat on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors appears set. San Marcos Mayor RANCHO Jim Desmond, a RepubliSFNEWS can, blew away the field, but didn’t earn enough votes to avoid a runoff. He tallied 45 percent (35,832) of the vote, while Democrat Michelle Gomez earned 22 percent (17,611), Oceanside City Councilman Jerry Kern, a Republican, finished third with 20 percent (16,186) and Democrat Jacqueline Arsivaud came in fourth with 12 percent (9,743). According to the San Diego County Registrar of Voters, there are 220,000 outstanding ballots, although many of those will not affect the District 5 race. Still, there are enough to flip second and third place. Still, Desmond is too far to catch and he touted his success as mayor as one reason he’s connected with District 5 voters. “I’ve been the mayor for this city for the last 12 years and regionally I’ve served on many different boards,” he explained. “I have a lot of support throughout the county. It’s helped me learn how to get things done. I think having those regional relationships has helped me hit the ground running.” It is the first time in 24 years the seat will be held by someone other than Bill Horn, who is termed out after Measure B passed in 2010. Desmond was long considered the frontrunner, and for several hours many thought he may
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Summer Stephan, who has been serving as interim San Diego County District Attorney, won a full term with a big victory in Tuesday’s primary (Page A3). Here she is warmly welcomed by supporters upon entering Golden Hall on Election Night in downtown San Diego. For local, county and state election results, see Pages A15-16. Photo by Shana Thompson
Warren, Boerner Horvath advance in 76th By Aaron Burgin
REGION — In the three elections since the inception of the 76th State Assembly District in 2012, no Democrat has advanced to the runoff stage of the campaign. In fact, no Democratic candidate has appeared on the ballot during that time. This backdrop makes the June 5 results all the more surprising, as two Democrats will move forward in the race to replace Rocky Chavez. Elizabeth Warren finished Tuesday night ahead of fellow Democrat Tasha Boerner Horvath by 330 votes, each with about 25 percent of the vote. Republican Phil Graham, who received the endorsement from the party’s establishment, finished in third
Democrats shut out Republicans in state Assembly contest place with 21.1 percent of the vote. “There weren’t a lot of big surprises on the night, only little surprises,” political consultant John Dadian said. “But this qualifies as one of those surprises.” Boerner Horvath, who serves on the Encinitas City Council, and Warren, a popular Oceanside activist, both expressed cautious optimism that the results would hold as the registrar of voters begins to count absentee, provisional and mailin ballots. “We have been saying all along that we look forward to turning the district
blue, and now we are looking forward to a positive runoff campaign,” Boerner Horvath said. “We remain optimistic that we’ll fare well when all the votes are counted,” Warren said. “I’d also like to send my thanks and good wishes to the many candidates who ran clean, issuefocused campaigns, and to the many volunteers who gave countless hours to our campaign and others. This election is about the voters — not the candidates. It’s about regular people who work hard and deserve better than they’re getting.” Seven candidates com-
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prised a crowded field to replace Chavez, who saw his bid to succeed Darrell Issa as 49th District congressman fail on June 5 as well. Graham was one of several high-profile Republicans, including Thomas Krouse, Amanda Rigby, Jerome Stocks and Maureen Muir. Graham’s campaign was roiled by false accusations that he forcibly kissed a woman in a bar last month. The San Diego Sheriff’s Department cleared Graham a week after the woman, Niki Burgan, made the allegations. Republicans and Graham’s campaign spent the final week fending off political mailers and robocalls TURN TO 76TH ON A3
TURN TO DISTRICT 5 ON A3
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