Politics

South County Voters Face Interesting Choices

By Pat Finn / Producer , Mark Sauer / Host, The Roundtable

Published October 28, 2020 at 12:59 PM PDT

This story was published more than 4 years ago.

San Diego County board of supervisors candidates Ben Hueso (left) and Nora Vargas (right) in this undated photo

South County Voters Face Interesting Choice

The big race in South County this election season is the race for County Supervisor in District 1. Greg Cox, who held the seat for 25 years, is termed out. State Senator Ben Hueso and Planned Parenthood VP Nora Vargas, both Democrats, are competing in the race. The Board is non-partisan, but has been dominated by Republicans for decades.

Read More

The race for Congressional District 51 in South San Diego County is, to put it bluntly, not close.

After all, Congressman Juan Vargas (D-National City) has faced his opponent, Juan Hidalgo, a Republican, also from National City, in the 51st District twice before. Vargas won more than 70% of the vote both times in the heavily Democratic district.

The South Bay, however, does have some interesting down-ballot races to keep an eye on. Gustavo Solis, a reporter for the San Diego Union-Tribune who covers the South Bay, discussed them with KPBS Midday Edition host Mark Sauer.

Advertisement

Become a KPBS sponsor

Two Democrats, state Senator Ben Hueso and Southwestern Community College District board member Nora Vargas, are competing for the District 1 seat on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors.

Related: Two Democrats Vying For County Supervisor Seat That’s Been In GOP Hands For Decades

Republican Greg Cox has represented District 1 for 25 years and is termed out, which means that there will be at least two Democrats on the five-member board for the first time.

The contest for the San Diego City Council's District 9 seat was thrown into disarray last month when Kelvin Barrios ended his campaign after he admitted to misusing funds while he was treasurer of the San Diego County Young Democrats.

Because of timing, Barrios will appear on the ballot along with his opponent, Democrat Sean Elo-Rivera. Barrios has said he'll serve if elected.

Advertisement

Become a KPBS sponsor

Related: Kelvin Barrios Ending Campaign For District 9 Seat

And, in a first, KPBS Midday Edition featured coverage of a race for one seat on the Otay Water District board. That's because the incumbent, Hector Gastellum, who previously ran for several offices unsuccessfully, posted divisive, racist remarks to his social media accounts while on the board.

Tags

Politics South Bay Politics, Democracy and Elections News

Pat Finn

Pat Finn previously served as a producer for KPBS Midday Edition and KPBS Evening Edition. Finn began her career in broadcasting at KTLA and KCET in Los Angeles. In 1979 she became KPBS’ Public Information Director, then Director of Advertising and Promotion, Program Director, and Director of Broadcasting. She oversaw the station’s local and national productions, including the one-hour documentary Los Romeros: The Royal Family of the Guitar, and Child Protective Services, a one-hour look inside the San Diego County agency responsible for the welfare of at risk children. Both programs also aired on public television stations nationwide. Finn has earned honors from the Society of Professional Journalists and the Pacific Southwest Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

See stories by Pat Finn

Mark Sauer

A newspaperman for more than 30 years, Mark Sauer joined KPBS in October 2010 and previously served as the host of the KPBS Roundtable. He spent 27 years as a reporter and editor at The San Diego Union-Tribune after stints at The Houston Post and at two papers in his native Michigan. A features/human-interest writer in the UT's Currents section for many years, Mark also spent about a third of his UT career as an editor and reporter on the Metro Desk. He has covered a wide range of events: Wild fires in Southern California and Hurricane Katrina on the Gulf Coast; Super Bowls and the World Series; foster care and child-abuse issues; the Roman Catholic Diocese's sexual-abuse scandal and bankruptcy; royal visits of Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles and Princess Diana; Republican and Democratic national conventions; high-profile criminal trials; and many other stories, from the silly to the sublime. Along the way, he interviewed everyone from presidents to pan-handlers. His work exposing the false accusations and prosecutions of several San Diegans for murder, rape and child abuse garnered Pulitzer Prize nominations and many regional and local journalism awards, including Best in the West, the Sol Price Award for Responsible Journalism and several San Diego and California bar-association awards. Mark has a degree in journalism from Michigan State University.

See stories by Mark Sauer

Public Matters Graphic Image of people behind a text that says "Public Matters"

Public Matters

You are part of something bigger. A neighborhood, a community, a county, a state, a country. All of these places are made stronger when we engage with each other in conversation and participate in local decision-making. But where and how to start? Introducing Public Matters.

Explore