Ballot Breakdown: District 5 county supervisor, District 40 state senator

S1: Welcome in San Diego. It's Jade Hindman. On today's show , we're breaking down your ballot with the 40th district Senate seat and the district five county supervisors race. This is KPBS Midday Edition. Connecting our communities through conversation. Less than two weeks from Election Day , and we're continuing to break down some of the biggest races and measures on your ballot. That takes us to North County , where we're watching the race for state Senate and county supervisor. I'm here with reporter Alex when he's the the North County multimedia producer for KPBS. Alex , welcome.

S2: Well , thanks for having me.

S1: Glad to have you here. So let's start with the race for district five. County supervisor , this is the seat Republican Jim Desmond is leaving as he runs for Congress. What should people know about this district and the role of a county supervisor.

S2: While the county government serves as the regional administrative arm of the state , so supervisors have broad authority over regional policy , public health , social services , and the unincorporated areas. And in those areas , they are the government and the sheriff's department is the local police force. And they control an annual budget of around $9 billion. That's billion with a B. And they also sit on key regional policy boards such as Sandag , the San Diego Association of Governments and the Regional Airport Authority and the Air Pollution Control District. So they help shape the infrastructure , transit and climate initiatives for the region.

S1: So what areas does district five cover?

S2: Well , it covers the northernmost part of the county , from Oceanside all the way to Escondido , and it also covers some of the unincorporated areas , such as Fallbrook and Rainbow to the north , Borrego Springs to the east , and Elfin Forest to the south.

S1: And currently Democrats control three of the five seats. How could this race shift that balance of power?

S2: Well , yeah , the Democrats have never had a supermajority on the board , so this would be uncharted territory for them. But it wasn't that long ago. If you remember , the Republicans controlled all five seats. So the Democratic majority is only a recent development. It started with the election of Nathan Fletcher , followed by Nora Vargas. And then , you know , Tara Lawson , remember Monica Montgomery and now Paloma Aguirre. But the supervisors work well with each other , so we haven't seen much hyper partisan divide that we've seen on the national level. And but officially , this race is nonpartisan , so voters won't see a D or an R next to the candidate's name. So name recognition probably matters more than party affiliation.

S1: Well , what can you tell us about the candidates in this race , starting with Kyle Creel?

S2: Well , Kyle is the Democratic candidate for this seat. He was the former deputy deputy chief of staff and district director for Congressman Mike Levin. He was also the former planning commissioner for the City of Oceanside , as well as the former chair of the Democratic Party.

S1: And you spoke to him ahead of the primary a few months ago. Here's what he had to say about his priorities.

S3: Our nurses , our firefighters , our teachers can't afford to live in the communities they serve. And I want to try to make that better by making sure that housing is more affordable than we control the cost of energy , that we make sure water doesn't keep going up.

S1: And what else did he tell you about his top priorities?

S2: Well , he says housing and affordability are the priorities in this district. As we know , it's tough living in San Diego with the cost of living. So he's looking to build more in San Diego and make it easier for for developers to build density housing. And here's what he has to say about that.

S3: The county also needs to play more of a role in making sure that we are both permitting more housing and also providing its own housing , whether through public private partnerships for more affordable housing and all kinds of levels , whether it's very low , all the way up to moderate.

S1: And that brings us to the other candidate in this race , Rebecca Jones. She served on the San Marcos City Council and now is acting mayor. What do we know about her and her record?

S2: Well , she is mayor , not acting mayor , but it is exactly just that she was on the Senate on the. Sorry , not San Diego San Marcos City Council for nearly 20 years , serving for the last two terms as mayor , which will end this year. She is running on that record. She touted her accomplishments as mayor in including making the city a major health care hub. Kaiser Permanente Permanente recently opened its hospital there , and Scripps has announced that it plans to finally build its hospital that's been in development for nearly 20 years. So , you know , and also , as the member of the Sandag board , she worked on policies to help decongest the highway 58 , which if you ever traveled that freeway , you know , during rush hour , it's pretty congested.

S1: She's declined requests for interviews with KPBS and other outlets. Do we know anything about her priorities if elected as supervisor?

S2: Yes , she told the Union Tribune that if she is elected supervisor , she wants to review all the investments that the county is making in North County , including some infrastructure , behavioral health and parks. She , you know , threw her support and behind an effort to modernize the county jail in Vista , which is the oldest jail in San Diego County. So it really needs an upgrade. Actually , I think it needs to be rebuilt , and it's probably going to cost about $1 billion if the work were to begin immediately.

S1: A major policy disagreement between these candidates is measure B. What is measure B and how has each candidate weighed in on it?

S2: Well , measure B is a citizen led , countywide initiative that proposes a half cent sales tax across the county. It is estimated to generate about 400 million to $450 million a year. If approved , 60% of that money would fund health care access , child care , food security and family support programs. It also would dedicate around 22% or so to funding programs to address the sewage crisis in the Tijuana River Valley , and the rest of the money would fund emergency response , such as wildfire prevention and other public safety initiatives. Now , Kralj initially opposed this measure , but now says he will support it and he wants it to pass. Jones has opposed it and opposed it , and she now leads a PAC that is spending heavily to defeat it.

S1: And fundraising on the Democratic side for Kyle Crail has been on the lower end. Rebecca Jones has fundraised twice the amount. So what? Or thrice rather.

S2: Than triple the amount. Triple.

S1: Triple. So what are some of the possible explanations for that?

S2: Well , this is one of the races that the Democrats are not super motivated to flip. Even if Crail loses , the board would still have a three two majority. And while Democrats made up about 37% of the voters in district five , about five percentage point over Republicans at 32%. Jim Desmond won this seat back in 2022. Um , you know , with about 60% of the vote. So it's worth noting that he was also the former mayor of San Marcos. And I say , as I said before , this race is nonpartisan , so you won't see any party affiliation on the ballot. So that means name recognition. Name recognition plays a big role. Yes.

S1: Yes. Okay , so moving on to the California Senate , where Democrats are attempting to flip another seat. This one is to represent district 40 , which includes inland North County and some of the East County. What is important to know about this district?

S4: Well , this district.

S2: Is shaped like an El. As you said , it covers the North County and also East County. And prior to 2021 , the district was heavily Democratic. Ben Hazel held the seat , you know , for about 13 , 14 years. But after the 2020 redistricting , it's more of a toss up. It leans more Republican. And Brian Jones won this seat in 2022 with about 53% of the vote.

S1: And it is currently represented by Brian Jones , who's a Republican and termed out. You mentioned. What are some of the issues Jones has tackled that remain issues for the person who fills the seat on , on on the state level? Yeah.

S2: Yeah. Well , Jones successfully secured funding for clinical research into emergency medical treatments and mental health treatments for military vets with PTSD. He also passed bills reforming how communities are notified about the placement of sexually violent predators or SVP. Requiring more transparency , coordination with local law enforcement. But as you know , steps are disproportionately placed in the backcountry in areas like Borrego Springs. But affordability and housing are a major issues that both candidates in this race say they are , that are their top priorities. Former city attorney Maura Elliott and businesswoman Christie Bruce Lane are vying to replace Jones.

S1: And so start by telling me about Christie Bruce Lane. So. So we know about the candidates here.

S2: Well , she won't talk to KPBS or any other local media for that matter. So we don't know much about her legislative priorities. She ran for state assembly twice and lost. But based on her campaign website , she says she wants to focus on the high cost of housing , energy and food prices. She also criticized the state criminal justice system as being , quote , soft on crimes. She also wants to deputize deputized local law enforcement to assist federal agents in border security. And she also supports prop 39 , which is the initiative requiring I.D. to vote at the polls.

S1: And you were able to talk to the other candidate in this race , Democrat Mara Elliott. She was the former San Diego city attorney , as you mentioned. So what can you tell us about her?

S4: Well , she is.

S2: An ethics attorney by training. And because of that , she says she has policymaking experience. Okay.

S1: Okay. And you recently sat down with her for an interview. Here's what she had to say about her approach to affordability.

S5: There's a lot we can do in the housing sphere. And I feel like that's where I can really step up with some ideas about underutilized land in the state of California that can be put aside so that we can create affordability for everybody , not according to what the statute says , because you can talk to all types of industries , from dentists to doctors who are just getting out of school , who can't afford to pay rent or get their first homes. So this is an issue that's impacting all of us.

S1: And what else did she tell you about her campaign and her policy making?

S2: Well , I did ask her about that. And as you know , the state has a super Democratic majority. But she says there are still some negotiations that you need to work with on , you know , other members to pass bills. And here's what she said about that.

S5: Well , I think policymaking is really a group experience , and it's important for whoever represents district 40 to immerse themselves in the district , which is something I did as city attorney. There were nine districts. As city attorney , I was in all of those districts getting to know what the issue was. And I am doing that right now , and I'm running against somebody that does not show up for television interviews or for forums between candidates. We haven't had forums or debates , and that's important for us to walk into rooms , even where it may be somewhat hostile , because we have a population that wants to get to know us. We can't only go into safe spaces or throw red meat to our supporters. We really need to understand what's happening in our community.

S1: And so what are you following next?

S2: Well , for me right now , it's the El Nino. Um , you know , Bajo el Nino , and it's affecting coastal erosion. And there is this major rail line that runs north and south and San Diego County , and it's right by the beach. And it's a beautiful line. Have you ever ridden it? But also because of that , the coastal erosion that can threaten it. So I want to see how the rail industry , as well as the government is working on that to make sure that , you know , it is safe to drive , and it is our only rail connection to the rest of the country.

S1: Yeah , I've seen some videos of that rail and water just crashing against the train as it as it goes along the coast. Yeah.

S2: Yeah.

S1: Pretty terrifying.

S2: Well , it's also pretty of your sitting side. I saw this video like , that's around social media of a girl watching it and waves crashing. And it's like , you know , it's it's beautiful , it's fun. But also it's eroding some of the sand that supports that rail or that railway. Exactly.

S1: Exactly. Well , we'll be looking to to see your reporting on that. I've been speaking with Alex when he's KPBS North County multimedia producer , and you can follow his coverage and other races on KPBS. Alex , thank you again.

S2: No , thanks for having me.

S1: That's our show for today. I'm your host , Jade Hindman. Thanks for tuning in to Midday Edition. Be sure to have a great day on purpose , everyone.