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4 of the 9 seats on theSan Diego City Council | |||||||||||||||||||
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The2018 San Diego City Council election occurred on November 6, 2018. The primary election was held June 5, 2018. Four of the nine seats of theSan DiegoCity Council were contested.
Municipal elections inCalifornia are officially non-partisan, although most members do identify a party preference. Atwo-round system was used for the election, starting with a primary in June followed by a runoff in November between the top-two candidates in each district.
The election resulted in a net gain of one seat for self-identified Democrats. This gave Democrats a two-thirds majority on the City Council, allowing them to override vetoes by Republican mayorKevin Faulconer on issues that divide along partisan lines. Additionally two incumbent council members were defeated, marking the first time any incumbent had lost a City Council election in the city since 1992.[1]
The even-numbered districts 2, 4, 6, and 8 were up for election in 2018. It was the first City Council election using the new rules that requires a runoff in November between the top-two candidates in the June primary whether or not any of the candidates get a majority of the vote.[2]
IncumbentsLorie Zapf (District 2),Myrtle Cole (District 4), andChris Cate (District 6) stood for reelection.David Alvarez (District 8) was ineligible to run due to term limits.[2] Republicans were considered more vulnerable to lose seats in the election due to the two Republican-held seats, Districts 2 and 6, being considered swing districts while the two Democrat-held seats, Districts 4 and 8, were considered safe districts. However, incumbents historically had not lost reelection to the San Diego City Council, and both Zapf and Cate had raised far more money than their challengers as of February 2018.[3]
District 2 consisted of the communities ofBay Ho/Bay Park/Morena,Midway/North Bay,Mission Beach,Ocean Beach,Pacific Beach, andPoint Loma. A large field of seven challengers qualified to run against incumbent council memberLorie Zapf.[2][4] In the June primary, Zapf advanced to the general election to face retired doctor Jennifer Campbell.[5] Campbell was elected to the City Council in the November general election, making Zapf one of the first incumbents on the City Council to lose a reelection bid since 1992.[1]
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Republican | Lorie Zapf | 13,786 | 42.85 | |
| Democratic | Jennifer Campbell | 6,871 | 21.36 | |
| Democratic | Bryan Pease | 6,375 | 19.81 | |
| Democratic | Jordan Beane | 3,190 | 9.92 | |
| Democratic | Daniel Smiechowski | 847 | 2.63 | |
| Republican | Kevin Melton | 737 | 2.29 | |
| Nonpartisan | Randy Hahn | 367 | 1.14 | |
| Total votes | 32,173 | 100 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Democratic | Jennifer Campbell | 32,439 | 57.97 | |
| Republican | Lorie Zapf | 23,516 | 42.03 | |
| Total votes | 55,955 | 100 | ||
District 4 consisted of the communities ofAlta 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, andWebster. Three challengers qualified to run against incumbent Council PresidentMyrtle Cole, all from her own party.[2] In the June primary, Cole advanced to the general election to face civil rights lawyerMonica Montgomery.[5] Montgomery was elected to the City Council in the November general election, making Cole one of the first incumbents on the City Council to lose a reelection bid since 1992. This did not impact the partisan composition of the City Council, since both Cole and Montgomery are Democrats.[1]
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Democratic | Monica Montgomery | 7,424 | 38.88 | |
| Democratic | Myrtle Cole | 7,418 | 38.85 | |
| Democratic | Tony Villafranca | 3,273 | 17.14 | |
| Democratic | Neal Arthur | 978 | 5.12 | |
| Total votes | 19,093 | 100 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Democratic | Monica Montgomery | 20,180 | 57.74 | |
| Democratic | Myrtle Cole | 14,769 | 42.26 | |
| Total votes | 34,949 | 100 | ||
District 6 consisted of the communities ofClairemont Mesa,Kearny Mesa,Mira Mesa,Mission Valley,North Clairemont, andRancho Peñasquitos. Five challengers qualified to run against incumbent council memberChris Cate.[2] In the June primary, Cate advanced to the general election to face environmental advocate Tommy Hough.[5] Cate was reelected in the November general election.[1]
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Republican | Chris Cate | 15,316 | 56.44 | |
| Democratic | Tommy Hough | 4,728 | 17.42 | |
| Democratic | Matt Valenti | 2,655 | 9.78 | |
| Democratic | Fayaz Nawabi | 1,838 | 6.77 | |
| Nonpartisan | Jeremiah Blattler | 1,490 | 5.49 | |
| American Solidarity | Kevin Lee Egger | 1,111 | 4.09 | |
| Total votes | 27,138 | 100 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Republican | Chris Cate | 25,022 | 53.78 | |
| Democratic | Tommy Hough | 21,505 | 46.22 | |
| Total votes | 46,527 | 100 | ||
District 8 consisted of the southern communities of San Diego and those along theMexico–United States border, including the communities ofBarrio Logan,Egger Highlands,Grant Hill,Logan Heights, Memorial,Nestor,Ocean View Hills,Otay Mesa West,Otay Mesa East,San Ysidro,Sherman Heights,Stockton, andTijuana River Valley. Incumbent council memberDavid Alvarez is ineligible to run due to term limits. Four candidates qualified to run for the open seat. In the June primary, Vivian Moreno, a political staffer in Alvarez's office, and Antonio Martinez, a community health clinic worker and member of the San Ysidro School District Board of Education, advanced to the general election.[5][9] Moreno was then elected to the City Council in the November general election with a majority of the vote.[1]
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Democratic | Vivian Moreno | 5,327 | 35.84 | |
| Democratic | Antonio Martinez | 4,087 | 27.50 | |
| Democratic | Christian Ramirez | 4,084 | 27.48 | |
| Democratic | Zachary Lazarus | 1,365 | 9.18 | |
| Total votes | 14,863 | 100 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Democratic | Vivian Moreno | 14,950 | 50.94 | |
| Democratic | Antonio Martinez | 14,401 | 49.06 | |
| Total votes | 29,351 | 100 | ||
On December 10, 2018, the new council was sworn in. For their first action, the council voted unanimously to appointGeorgette Gomez as council president.[12]
