Recap Stories on Local La Mesa Races

Check Patch for ongoing coverage of all the races and propositions that affect La Mesa and Spring Valley. Below is a list of what we will be following throughout the day.

For more information about each candidate or proposition, click on the hyperlink.

Election Races

53rd Congressional District: There is one seat open, and two candidates running.

Recap Story:

UPDATE, 11:36 p.m.: Davis continues to hold a strong lead over Popaditch, with 50.2 percent of precincts reporting. Davis has garnered 58.9 percent of the vote, compared to Popaditch's 41.1 percent.

* * *

UPDATE 8:16 p.m.: With 21.76 percent of precints reporting, incumbent Susan Davis has a commanding lead over Nick Popaditch in the race for the 53rd Congressional District.

• Susan Davis  | Campaign Contributions
• Nick Popaditch   | Campaign Contributions

79^th State Assembly: There is one seat open, and two candidates running.

Recap Story: Shirley Weber Easily Beats Underfunded Mary England in 79th Assembly District

UPDATE, 11:38 p.m.: Weber continues to hold a strong lead over England, extending her lead with 58.5 percent of the vote, compared to England's 41.5 with 51 percent of precincts reporting.

* * *

UPDATE 8:17 p.m.: With 24.75 percent of precincts reporting, Shirley Weber leads Mary England handily. Weber has 57.44 percent of the vote, to 42.56 for England.

• Mary England
• Shirley Weber

La Mesa City Council: There are two seats open, and five candidates running.

Story Recap: Sterling Credits ‘Faithful Base’ for Council Win; Alessio Takes Allan Seat

UPDATE, 12:32 a.m.: Now with 20 out of 38 precincts reporting, Sterling and Alessio continue to lead the pack. Sterling is out in front with 28 percent of the vote, followed by Alessio with 25.3 percent, O'Dunn with 21.7 percent, Dean with 14.8 percent, and Lothian with 10 percent.

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UPDATE, 11:19 p.m: With only two more precincts reporting (7 out of 38), Sterling and Alessio are maintaining their leads. Sterling, has received 3,434 votes to Alessio's 3,047. Shannon O'Dunn is third with 2,604 votes. Patrick Dean (1,747) and Laura Lothian (1,159) round out the field.

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UPDATE, 8:15 p.m: With 5 out of 38 precincts reporting, incumbent Ruth Sterling and Kristine Alessio have taken an early lead in the race for City Council. Sterling appears on almost 40 percent of the ballots, while Alessio appears on 35.28 percent. Shannon O'Dunn is third, selected on 30.2 percent of ballots, while Patrick Dean (20.34) and Laura Lothian (13.5) trail behind.

• Kristine Alessio
• Patrick Dean
• Laura Lothian
• Shannon O'Dunn
• Ruth Sterling

See also: 2012 La Mesa City Council Election Guide

La Mesa-Spring Valley School District: There are two seats open, and three candidates running.

UPDATE 11:11 p.m. With 45 percent of precincts reporting, Emma Turner and Bill Baber continue to have strong leads over the challnger Jay Stieger. The incumbents are likely to retain their seats, as Turner leads with 37.7 percent of the vote, and Baber just behind at 36 percent.

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UPDATE 8:24 p.m.: With 24.5 percent of precincts reporting, incumbent school board members Emma Turner (38 percent) and Bill Baber (36 percent) look like strong bets to retain their seats. Challenger Jay Steiger (25 percent) trails.

• Bill Baber
• Jay Steiger
• Emma Turner

Grossmont Union High School District: There are two seats open, and six candidates running.

UPDATE 11:14 p.m.: With 53.9 percent of precincts reporting, incumbent Priscilla Schreiber holds a large lead in the race for two open seats on the GUHSD board. Schrieber has been selected on 28.2 percent of ballots. The battle for the last remaining seat is a tight one, with fellow incumbent Gary Woods (19.05 percent) and challenger Jim Stieringer (19.27 percent). The two lead the rest of the pack and are seperated by only 232 votes as of the latest update.

• Zach Miller
• Priscilla Schreiber
• Barbara Stevens
• Jim Stieringer
• Bill Weaver
• Gary Woods

Helix Water District Board of Directors: There are three seats open (one each in Divisions 1, 3, 5), and six candidates running.

UPDATE, 11:30 p.m.: In Division 1, incumbent John Linden holds a lead over challenger Mario Tilaro. With 54 percent of precincts reporting, Linden has earned 57.5 percent of the vote, while Tilaro checks in at 42.4 percent. In Division 3, the incumbent is also leading, with Chuck Muse (53.9 percent) holding a slightly smaller lead over Lori Kern (46.1 percent) with 48.5 percent of precincts reporting. The only challenger to hold a lead is in Division 5, where Joel Scalzitti leads incumbent Richard Smith. Scalzitti sits at 55.5 percent of the vote, while Smith is at 44.5 percent, with 43 percent of precincts reporting.

• John Linden (D1)
• Mario Tilaro (D1)
• Lori Kern (D3)
• Chuck Muse (D3)
• Joel Scalzitti (D5)
• Richard Smith (D5)

The following races are relevant to residents in Spring Valley:

71^st State Assembly: There is one seat open, and two candidates running.

Recap Story: Santee’s Brian Jones Wins Re-Election to Assembly in the 71st District

UPDATE, 12:36 a.m.: Incumbent Brian Jones led from the outset in this race. With 81 percent of precincts reporting, Jones has a commanding lead with 64.2 percent of the vote, compared to Hurley's 35.8 percent.

• Brian Jones
• Patrick Hurley

Otay Water District Board of Directors: There is one open seat in divisions 2, and 5, and seven candidates running.

UPDATE, 12:38 a.m. Incumbent Mark Robak is likely to retain his seat in Division 5, as he has more than doubled each of his opponents, garnering 49.2 percent of the vote against Tim Stanton (19.6), David Charles (19.1) and Ronald Ripperger (11.9 percent). Meanhwile, with 55 percent of precincts reporting, Division 2 is a much closer race, with incumbet Mitch Thompson leading David Krogh by only 50 total votes. Thompson has 39.86 percent of the votes, followed by Krogh with 38.6 percent, and Lopez at 21.5 percent.

• David Krogh
• Tracy Lopez
• Mitch Thompson
• David Charles
• Ronald Ripperger
• Mark Robak
• Tim Stanton

Propositions

Recap Story:

Prop 30: Temporary Taxes to Fund Education

Prop 31: State Budget Process

Prop 32: Political Contributions by Payroll Deductions

Prop 33: Auto Insurance Rates

Prop 34: Death Penalty Repeal

Prop 35: Human Trafficking/Sex Offender Penalties

Prop 36: Three Strikes Law

Prop 37: Genetically Modified Foods

Prop 38: Tax to Fund Education and Early Childhood Programs  

Prop 39: Multistate Business Tax

Prop 40: Redistricting

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