Gibson, Dow, Irons win in SLO County; Compton and Ray head for runoff

June 4, 2014

Correction: The Morro Bay City Council race results originally reported reflected the percentages of votes cast, as opposed to percentages of ballots cast. Also, candidates in the Morro Bay council race must receive votes from more than 50 percent of voters in order to avoid a runoff election. It is currently unclear whether or not the race for one council seat will go to a runoff.

By JOSH FRIEDMAN

Board of Supervisors chairman Bruce Gibson, Deputy District Attorney Dan Dow and Morro Bay Mayor Jamie Irons were San Luis Obispo County’s big winners Tuesday night in the 2014 primary election.

Gibson cruised to reelection in the county’s second district, receiving more than twice as many votes as his challenger, Cambria CSD Director Muril Clift. Next year, Gibson will begin his third term on the board of supervisors.

Dow won handily in what amounted to the testiest countywide race in the primary. He received 53.30 percent of the votes for district attorney, while Covello tallied 44.53 percent.

In Morro Bay, 56.73 percent of voters chose Irons, while 42.84 percent voted for former councilwoman Carla Borchard. Irons won reelection just months after fighting off a recall push during his first term in office.

Two county races are heading for November run offs. Sitting fourth district county supervisor Caren Ray will face challenger Lynn Compton again in November.

On Tuesday, Compton finished with the most votes in the three-way race for the fourth district seat but did not receive a majority needed to win the race outright. Compton received 46.43 percent of the vote, followed by Ray who tallied 42.60 percent.

Mike Byrd, the third candidate, garnered just 10.80 percent of the district four vote.
The other race that will require a November runoff is the county clerk-recorder election. Tommy Gong, who collected 45.37 percent of the vote, will face Amanda King, who received 43.82 percent.

Challenger Ann Danko received 10.62 percent of the vote.

In the Morro Bay City Council race, newcomers Matt Makowetski and John Headding both had strong showings. Makowetski has won a seat on the council because 60.76 percent of Morro Bay voters selected him.

Headding’s name appeared on 49.86 percent of ballots counted. Some ballots remain uncounted, and Headding’s tally must surpass 50 percent in order for him to secure a seat on the council.

Incumbent Nancy Johnson, the only other candidate, currently sits at 35.99 percent. Johnson could enter a runoff with Headding, though, if he remains below 50 percent.

So far, San Luis Obispo County elections officials have counted 46,821 ballots. They have yet to count vote by mail ballots submitted Tuesday. Excluding those returns, there was a voter turnout rate of 31.15 percent in the county.

In the 24th U.S. Congressional District, Congresswoman Lois Capps will likely face former actor Chris Mitchum in November. However, that race is not finalized, as Mitchum leads former congressional staffer Justin Fareed by just 914 votes.

Mitchum totaled 15.6 percent of the vote, while Fareed received 14.7 percent in the race for second. Santa Barbara Councilman Dale Francisco closely trailed Mitchum and Fareed at 12.0 percent.

Late last night, Assemblyman Tim Donnelly conceded to former TARP program administrator Neel Kashkari in the bid to square off with Governor Jerry Brown in November.

Donnelly, who led Kashkari in polls until the final week of the campaign, received 14.8 percent of the vote for governor. Kashkari tallied 19.0 percent.

Proposition 42, backed by media and government transparency advocates, passed with 61.5 percent of the vote. The law will force local agencies to comply with the California Public Records Act and Ralph M. Brown Act, regardless of cost. It will also forbid local agencies from passing the cost of doing so onto the state.