Close to 118,000 SLO County ballots counted. More are coming — and results may change
Close to 118,000 ballots were cast and counted in San Luis Obispo County on Election Night, but the races are far from over.
“Everything went really well, considering all the new changes and the new technology,” county Clerk-Recorder Tommy Gong said Wednesday.
According to unofficial election results released by the San Luis Obispo County Clerk-Recorder’s Office, 117,974 ballots were counted as of 11:30 p.m. Tuesday.
That’s roughly 64% of the total 184,050 registered local voters, according to the report.
Gong said more ballots remain to be counted. Those include vote-by-mail ballots that were received Tuesday and those arriving in the next few days that were postmarked on or before Election Day, as well as provisional ballots that have to be checked by election officials.
How many ballots is that exactly? The answer is unclear.
When reached for comment, Gong said his office is still determining how many ballots remain to be counted, though he noted it appears to be “a large number.” He expects to have more information on that by the end of the day Wednesday.
Gong said he hopes to have final election results certified before Thanksgiving.
According to Political Data Inc.’s tracker, roughly 128,970 ballots were returned in San Luis Obispo County as of Election Day.
Not taking into account any ballots that had errors or were improperly filled out, or VBM ballots received later, this means there could be at least 10,996 ballots still to be counted in the county.
For the closest races, that could significantly impact the results.
SLO County election results: Some races too close to call
Several of the local city council or mayoral election races remained too close to call following Election Night, while others showed candidates on the clear path to victory.
Here is a rundown of the latest election results.
- Atascadero: Heather Moreno won a second term as Atascadero mayor with 43.4% of the vote, while Charles Bourbeau likely took the top spot in the Atascadero City Council race with 27.8%, according to final unofficial election results. Meanwhile, Mark Dariz (24.5%) and Tori Keen (24.3%) were neck-and-neck in the race for the second council seat, with Dariz narrowly in the lead.
“I’m grateful for the broad coalition of support that I received and am looking forward to building upon the success of the last two years,” Moreno told The Tribune. - Cambria: With final unofficial election night results in soon after 11 p.m., board president Harry Farmer and challenger Karen Dean retained their firm leads in the race to fill seats on the Cambria Community Services District board of directors (30.4% and 27.4% of the vote, respectively).
- Grover Beach: With the final unofficial round of election results in, Grover Beach Mayor Jeff Lee won his second term as mayor with 70.6% of the vote, and City Council candidates Karen Bright (31%), Anna Miller (23.3%) and Robert Robert (34.2%) seemed to be heading for victory. “I must say the Grover Beach voters never fail to amaze me and remind me why I love this city,” Bright said.
Morro Bay: Unofficial final election returns showed incumbent John Headding ahead in the race for Morro Bay mayor with 52.5% of the vote, while Robert “Red” Davis (28%) and Laurel Barton (27.6%) were in the lead for two open seats on the Morro Bay City Council. “I am proud to work for a smart, engaged electorate who never hesitate to tell us what they think and what direction they want the city to move,” Davis said Wednesday.
Paso Robles: Councilman Fred Strong won his bid to become Paso Robles’ District 4 council member in the city’s first by-district elections in its history, according to final unofficial election results. He had 62.7% of the vote.
Pismo Beach: With unofficial final election results in, Pismo Beach Mayor Ed Waage was headed for a third term with 58.5% of the vote, while Scott Newton (34.8%) and Marcia Guthrie (24.5%) appeared to have secured their spots on the City Council. If these election results hold over the coming days, longtime councilman Erik Howell, with 22.8% of the vote, has been unseated from the City Council.
San Luis Obispo: With final unofficial election results in, incumbent San Luis Obispo Mayor Heidi Harmon kept her seat by a large margin — 53.9% of the vote — while incumbent Councilwoman Andy Pease (24.6%) and former city mayor Jan Marx (20.5%) were ahead in the race for the two open seats on the City Council.
“We believe we’re well on our way to victory and I am so proud to be called to serve as mayor of SLO once again,” Harmon wrote in an email to supporters Wednesday morning.
As of Tuesday night, all three school bond measures before San Luis Obispo County voters appeared to have passed, while the five sales tax measures before local cities all also appeared heading for victory.
What happened with state races for Assembly, Senate and House of Representatives?
In the election for the Central Coast’s state Assembly seat, incumbent Assemblyman Jordan Cunningham was maintaining a 4-point lead over challenger Dawn Addis.
As of 11 a.m. Wednesday, Cunningham had 52% of the vote to Addis’ 48%, with all precincts partially reporting, according to the California Secretary of State.
Meanwhile in the race for the 17th State Senate District, Democrat John Laird of Santa Cruz was headed to a solid win over Republican opponent and Carmel businesswoman Vicki Nohrden, 68% to 32%, with all precincts partially reporting.
In the race for the 24th Congressional District, Democratic incumbent Salud Carbajal was on his way to re-election as of Wednesday morning.
As of 11 a.m., the California Secretary of State’s website showed Carbajal well ahead with 61.9% of the vote, compared to Republican challenger Andy Caldwell’s 38.1%, with all precincts partially reporting.
How did SLO County vote for president?
In the race for president, San Luis Obispo County residents overwhelmingly favored former Vice President Joe Biden over President Donald Trump.
As of 11:45 p.m. Tuesday, the San Luis Obispo County Clerk-Recorder’s Office reported that local voters backed Biden 59.7%, compared to Trump’s 38.2%.
Trump supports far outweighed Biden support in in-person voting. According to election night results, 4,321 votes cast in person at local polling locations Tuesday were for Trump, versus 2,801 for Biden.
Local voter turnout expected to increase
If you think a voter turnout rate of 64% seems markedly lower than normal, you’re not alone.
Gong said he expects that number will increase over the coming days as his office tallies VBM ballots still arriving.
As of Wednesday afternoon, he said the number of ballots received in San Luis Obispo County indicates a voter turnout of closer to 76%.
The local record for voter turnout was set in 2008 with 83%. The 2016 presidential election saw roughly the same turnout.
“We’ll see if we get there,” Gong said.
This story was originally published November 4, 2020 at 1:47 PM.
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