San Diego City Council election, 2014

The 2014 San Diego City Council election is scheduled for November 4, 2014. The primary election was held on June 3, 2014. Four of the nine seats of the San Diego City Council were contested. Two incumbents ran for re-election in their same district and one ran for election in a new district due to redistricting.

Municipal elections in California are officially non-partisan, although most members do identify a party preference. A two-round system was used for the election, starting with a primary in June followed by a runoff in November between the top-two candidates if no candidate received a majority of the votes in the first round.

Campaign

Council Districts used for the 2014 election

The 2014 election was the second to use the new districts created by the 2010 Redistricting Commission. It was the first time that even-numbered districts 2, 4, 6, and 8 were up for election using the new boundaries.

Incumbents Myrtle Cole (District 4) and David Alvarez (District 8) won re-election by getting more than 50% in the June primary. Lorie Zapf (District 2) was also re-elected in the June primary, but in a different district then the one she previously represented due to redistricting. Chris Cate and Carol Kim were the top two vote-getters for the open seat in District 6 and will face each other in the November 2014 general election.[1]

Results

District 2

District 2 consisted of the communities of Bay Ho/Bay Park/Morena, Midway/North Bay, Mission Beach, Ocean Beach, Pacific Beach, and Point Loma. Incumbent council member Ed Harris, who had been appointed to finish the balance of Kevin Faulconer's term, was ineligible to run for reelection.[2] Lorie Zapf, who had been serving as the council member representing District 6, was forced to run in District 2 due to a 2010 redistricting. Zapf was elected with a majority of the votes in the June primary.[1]

San Diego City Council District 2 primary election, 2014[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Nonpartisan Lorie Zapf 13,600 53.02
Nonpartisan Sarah Boot 9,864 38.45
Nonpartisan Mark Schwartz 1,272 4.96
Nonpartisan Jim Morrison 915 3.57
Total votes 25,651 100

District 4

District 4 consisted of the communities of Alta Vista, Broadway Heights, Chollas View, Emerald Hills, Encanto, Greater Skyline Hills, Jamacha, Lincoln Park, Lomita Village, North Bay Terrace, Oak Park, O'Farrell, Paradise Hills,Redwood Village, Rolando Park, South Bay Terrace, Valencia Park, and Webster. Incumbent council member Myrtle Cole was reelected with a majority of the vote in June primary.[1]

San Diego City Council District 4 primary election, 2014[4]
Party Candidate Votes %
Nonpartisan Myrtle Cole 6,921 57.00
Nonpartisan Bruce Williams 2,378 19.58
Nonpartisan Blanca Lopez Brown 1,832 15.09
Nonpartisan Tony Villafranca 1,011 8.33
Total votes 12,142 100

District 6

District 6 consisted of the communities of Clairemont Mesa, Kearny Mesa, Mira Mesa, Mission Valley, North Clairemont, and Rancho Peñasquitos. Incumbent council member Lorie Zapf shifted from District 6 to District 2 due to the 2010 redistricting. Chris Cate and Carol Kim received the most votes in the June primary. Since no candidate won a majority, a runoff was held in November to determine the winner.[1] Cate won a majority in the runoff and was elected to the City Council.[5]

San Diego City Council District 6 primary election, 2014[6]
Party Candidate Votes %
Nonpartisan Chris Cate 10,270 47.17
Nonpartisan Carol Kim 6,880 31.59
Nonpartisan Mitz Lee 2,717 12.48
Nonpartisan Jane L. Glasson 1,012 4.65
Nonpartisan De Le 895 4.11
Total votes 21,774 100
San Diego City Council District 6 general election, 2014[5][6]
Party Candidate Votes %
Nonpartisan Chris Cate 13,399 54.57
Nonpartisan Carol Kim 11,155 45.43
Total votes 24,554 100

District 8

District 8 consisted of the southern communities of San Diego and those along the Mexico–United States border, including the communities of Barrio Logan, Egger Highlands, Grant Hill, Logan Heights, Memorial, Nestor, Ocean View Hills, Otay Mesa West, Otay Mesa East, San Ysidro, Sherman Heights, Stockton, and Tijuana River Valley. Incumbent council member David Alvarez was elected after receiving a majority of the votes in the June primary.[1]

San Diego City Council District 8 primary election, 2014[7]
Party Candidate Votes %
Nonpartisan David Alvarez 6,720 76.43
Nonpartisan Lincoln Pickard 2,072 23.57
Total votes 8,792 100

Aftermath

The primary victories by Cole and Alvarez ensured that self-identified Democrats would continue to control at least a five seat majority on the City Council. However, the District 6 general election race left open the question of whether or not they would also continue to control a six-seat two-thirds supermajority of the city council, allowing them to overrule a mayoral veto by Republican Mayor Kevin Faulconer on issues that split along party lines.[8] Cate ultimately won the district 6 runoff, denying the self-identified democrats a supermajority.[5]

On December 10, 2014, the new council was sworn in. For their first action, the council voted 4–5 on a motion of whether to reappoint Todd Gloria as council president, with Sherri Lightner joining the four council republicans to defeat the measure. The council then successfully voted to appoint Lightner as the council president with a vote of 7–2, with only Gloria and David Alvarez in opposition.[9]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Zapf Wins; Cate, Kim Headed To Runoff In City Council Races". KPBS. June 3, 2014. Retrieved June 19, 2014.
  2. Cavanaugh, Maureen (April 9, 2014). "Meet Ed Harris, San Diego's Newest Councilman". KPBS. Retrieved June 18, 2014.
  3. "Election History - Council District 2". City of San Diego. Retrieved 12 January 2013.
  4. "Election History - Council District 4". City of San Diego. Retrieved 12 January 2013.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 Garrick, David (November 5, 2014). "Cate beats Kim for SD council". U-T San Diego. Retrieved November 5, 2014.
  6. 6.0 6.1 "Election History - Council District 6". City of San Diego. Retrieved 12 January 2013.
  7. "Election History - Council District 8". City of San Diego. Retrieved 12 January 2013.
  8. Mento, Tarryn (May 26, 2014). "District Elections Could Shake Up San Diego City Council". KPBS. Retrieved June 19, 2014.
  9. Mento, Tarryn; Trageser, Claire (December 10, 2014). "Gloria Ousted As San Diego Council President; Fellow Democrat Lightner Elected". KPBS. Retrieved December 10, 2014.