Elections
Carbajal, Cunningham lead: Here’s who’ll advance to November in CA’s legislative races
Three Central Coast races will ultimately be decided in the Nov. 3 general election, but early primary results Tuesday night already show clear front-runners and unlikely paths ahead for several other candidates.
U.S. House of Representatives
In the 24th Congressional District race, Democratic Rep. Salud Carbajal finished the night with an 8-point lead over Republican challenger Andy Caldwell.
With all precincts reporting as of Wednesday morning, Carbajal had 52% of the vote to Caldwell’s 44%.
Independent Kenneth Young, a Santa Barbara civil engineer who ran a mostly social media-based online campaign, trailed in a distant third with just under 4%.
Carbajal, who is seeking his third term, was a Santa Barbara County supervisor before being elected to represent the 24th District in 2016.
In 2018, he defeated Republican challenger Justin Fareed by a wide margin, 59% to 41%.
As the top two highest vote-getters, Carbajal and Caldwell are headed for a match-up in the November election.
In a statement from Carbajal’s office, the incumbent congressman said he was proud and grateful to all Central Coast voters who showed up to support him.
“This election is pivotal for our Central Coast, state and nation, and I’m grateful to all in our community who made their voices heard at the ballot box, through vote-by-mail and through California’s early voting,” Carbajal said in the release. “It is an honor to serve our 24th Congressional District and stand up for our values in Congress each day.
“Based on the results we’re seeing, I’m proud that it seems Central Coast residents want me to continue fighting for those values in Congress,” he added. “I thank everyone for voting and urge our community to keep this momentum up come November.”
Caldwell is a longtime conservative talk show host on 1440-AM radio and founder of the nonprofit activist group Coalition of Labor, Agriculture, and Business of Santa Barbara County. This is Caldwell’s first run for elected office.
“I couldn’t be happier with how we did in San Luis Obispo County,” he told The Tribune on Wednesday. “And we believe we can make up the ground we need in Santa Barbara County between now and November.”
The 24th Congressional District encompasses all of San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties, as well as a small portion of northern Ventura County.
California Assembly
With 100% of precincts reporting, incumbent Republican Assemblyman Jordan Cunningham held a substantial advantage is his bid for a third term, leading Democratic challenger and Morro Bay Councilwoman Dawn Addis by 27 points.
Since they are the only two candidates on the primary election ballot, both automatically advance to November.
As of Wednesday morning, Cunningham led Addis 61% to 34%.
“Tonight shows that the Central Coast wants an independent, problem-solving legislator that fights for our region,” Cunningham said in a statement to The Tribune on Tuesday night. “We will continue to fight for policies that lower the cost of living, promote career technical education and fight human trafficking. We will continue to increase investment in critical infrastructure like highways and our water supply.”
Despite the vote margin, Addis was upbeat about the campaign to come.
“The Central Coast deserves a leader who is as hard-working as we are, who shows up as much as we do, and who actually gets things done. That’s me,” she told The Tribune in an email on Wednesday. “I’m ready for a campaign that demonstrates those values and is ready to win.”
California’s 35th Assembly District encompasses all of San Luis Obispo County and northern Santa Barbara County. Cunningham has served the district since 2016.
Though the district has not been represented by a Democrat since redistricting redrew its boundaries in 2012, Republican voter registration there has been on a steady decline as both Democrat and No Party Preference voters increased.
As of October 2019, Democrats held a majority with 44% of registered voters, while Republican registration fell to less than 24%. No Party Preference voters, at the same time, shot up to nearly 27%, or nearly 5.3 million voters.
In his last general election victory in 2018, Cunningham received 56%, compared with 44% for Democrat Bill Ostrander.
California Senate
In the Central Coast’s state Senate District 17 race, front-runner John Laird, the state’s former natural resources secretary under then-Gov. Jerry Brown, was the top vote-getter and will likely face Republican newcomer Vicki Nohrden, a Carmel businesswoman and court-appointed child advocate.
Also in the race were Democrats Maria Cadenas, executive director of the nonprofit Santa Cruz Community Ventures, and John Nevill, a rancher and respiratory therapist from King City.
With 100% of precincts reporting, Laird was ahead with 42%, followed by Nohrden with 36%. Cadenas trailed in third at 19%, and Nevill had 3%.
The top-two vote-earners will move on to the presidential election.
The State Senate District 17 seat has only been held by Democrat Bill Monning, since it was redistricted in 2012. Monning terms out in January 2021 and has endorsed Laird.
According to the California Office of the Secretary of State, voter registration in the district as of Jan. 3 was at 45% Democrat, 24% Republican, and 24% No Party Preference.
The district encompasses all of San Luis Obispo and Santa Cruz counties as well as portions of Monterey and Santa Clara counties.
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