Which SLO County map will Dist. 3 supervisor election use? Here’s what attorney general says
One San Luis Obispo County supervisor will run for election in 2022 using old district boundaries — even though the other races will take place using the newly adopted redistricting map, according to a new opinion from the California Attorney General’s Office.
The county Board of Supervisors on Tuesday adopted a redistricting map that will significantly change their five representation areas. District 2 Supervisor Bruce Gibson and District 4 Supervisor Lynn Compton will run for re-election next June in their newly drawn districts.
But District 3 Supervisor Dawn Ortiz-Legg will run for office in the 2011 version of her representation area. This is because the District 3 race will be a special election, while the other two are normal races held at the regular time.
The supervisors have staggered terms, and voters elect board members to new four-year terms every two years. Even-numbered Districts 2 and 4 have elections during the same year, as do odd-numbered Districts 1, 3 and 5.
Appointed supervisors must run for election soon after taking office
Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed Ortiz-Legg to fill the District 3 seat left empty after late Supervisor Adam Hill died in August 2020.
Prior to his death, Hill won his bid for re-election against Stacy Korsgaden in March 2020. This means his term would not have been up until 2024.
However, Ortiz-Legg’s appointment meant that another District 3 race would be held in 2022, as a supervisor who fills a vacancy must either serve until the next general election or the end of the previous board member’s term, whichever comes first.
Ortiz-Legg has not yet announced that she’s running for office in 2022. However, county Clerk-Recorder’s Office election records show Ortiz-Legg filed her Form 501 candidate intention statement in July.
The county has previously held elections in which appointees must run for re-election soon after assuming office. Compton became supervisor in 2015 by defeating Caren Ray Russom — the current mayor of Arroyo Grande — who Gov. Jerry Brown appointed to replace late Supervisor Paul Teixeira after his death in 2013.
However, that election did not take place on the heels of the county’s redistricting process, which makes the 2022 race more complicated.
Attorney general’s opinion in agreement with SLO County counsel
County Counsel Rita Neal asked state Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office to provide an opinion about which District 3 boundaries should be used for the 2022 election, and whether the newly elected supervisor should serve a full four-year term or run for office again in 2024.
At issue was whether the District 3 race should be considered a “special election,” as a race of that kind would take place under the old boundaries, while a regular race would use the new ones.
Neal told supervisors on Nov. 30 that she had requested an expedited opinion from the Attorney General’s Office, as the new district map is scheduled to take effect in January and candidates will need to begin filing forms to run for office.
Her office’s opinion was that the District 3 race would be a special election and would use the old boundaries. Neal’s office also thought the newly elected supervisor’s term would conclude in 2024.
Bonta’s office came to the same conclusion.
“... We conclude that because the election to fill a supervisorial vacancy takes place at a time not designated by law for the regular election of that office, it is a special election for that office,” the opinion said. “Accordingly, the plain text of Elections Code section 21506 excludes this category of elections from the general rule that new district boundaries shall apply in elections after redistricting. Instead, the old district boundaries apply.”
Bonta’s office also found that the victor of the 2022 District 3 election will serve for two years, again agreeing with Neal’s office.
“This ‘term of office’ is not ‘affected by any change of the boundaries of the district from which the supervisor was elected,’” the opinion said. “Since the term of office of Supervisor Hill, the deceased supervisor elected in 2020, was four years, the supervisor who is elected to District Three in 2022 will serve for two years, the remainder of that term.”
To read the full Attorney General’s Office opinion online, visit oag.ca.gov/system/files/opinions/pdfs/21-1103.pdf.
This story was originally published December 20, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
