Live Results
Incumbent Stephen Whitburn took a strong lead over his challengers Tuesday in the race for San Diego City Council District 3.
San Diego voters are deciding which candidates will compete in a Nov. 5 runoff election to represent District 3 on the San Diego City Council.
Whitburn is seeking another four years in office. His challengers are Kate Callen, Coleen Cusack and Ellis "California" Jones. District 3 covers most of the city's urban core, including downtown, Bankers Hill, Mission Hills, Hillcrest, University Heights, North Park, South Park, Golden Hill and most of Mission Valley.
Closer look
Whitburn has a number of advantages in the race, including a large amount of campaign cash and support from deep pocketed interest groups such as the San Diego & Imperial Counties Labor Council, the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce and the Building Industry Association of San Diego County. He argues he has supported policies to increase housing production and expand opportunities for homeless individuals to find shelter or stay in city-sanctioned encampments.
Callen, who works as a philanthropy writer and has served on the volunteer North Park Planning Committee, has sought to position herself as a defender of neighborhoods and longtime residents. She opposes new bike lanes and local incentive programs that allow higher density in exchange for more affordable housing.
Cusack, who won the endorsement of the San Diego Union-Tribune editorial board, has worked as a public interest attorney defending homeless clients charged with low-level quality of life crimes. She has criticized the city's camping ban, which was championed by Whitburn, as cruel and inhumane.
Jones is the only Republican in the race, and the only candidate for city office who was endorsed by the San Diego County Republican Party. He says he wants fewer restrictions on police officers and harsher enforcement of laws that criminalize sleeping in public.
