With early votes tallied for the San Diego City Council seats up for grabs in the 2022 General Election, it appears the ostensibly non-partisan council will be entirely represented by democrats for the first time in city history.
The San Diego Registrar's Office said approximately 500,000 votes are still left to be tallied and the votes won't be officially certified until Dec. 8. With that in mind, here's a look at early results in districts 2, 4, 6 and 8.
District 2 | Jennifer Campbell vs. Linda Lukacs
Jennifer Campbell jumped out to an early lead over Linda Lukacs in the race for San Diego City Council District 2. With another batch of votes reported Friday evening by the San Diego County Registrar of Voters Office, Campbell was holding strong with 55% of the vote.
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"I feel great. I'm really glad. I'm very happy. I really just wanted to serve my constituency and continue going. We've done a lot of big things for this city and for District 2 and we want to keep going, helping our city and our district go forward," Campbell told NBC 7 on election night.
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Campbell, the incumbent, tallied the most votes in the June primary (29.8%) and Lukacs was a close second (25.4%) in a six-candidate field. Campbell was elected to the City Council in 2018 after beating Lorie Zapf for the District 2 seat.
District 2 serves Clairemont, Linda Vista, Pacific Beach, Midway, Mission Beach, Ocean Beach and Point Loma. While municipal races in California are ostensibly nonpartisan, District 2 was flipped from Republican to Democrat by Campbell in 2018. Campbell survived a recall effort in 2021 and served as City Council President for a year before being replaced by Sean Elo-Rivera.
Campbell describes herself as a pro-choice physician who will stand up for women's choice. She's endorsed by Senator Toni Atkins, San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria and Board of Supervisors Chair Nathan Fletcher, and Congressional representatives Scott Peters (D-CA 52), Sara Jacobs (D-CA 53), Juan Vargas (D-Ca 51) and Mike Levin (D-CA 49).
Lukacs has had careers in healthcare, academics and business, according to her campaign website, and says she's "saddened and frustrated by the current state of [District 2]."
Lukacs has been endorsed by the San Diego County Republican Party but says she would lead in a nonpartisan manner. She supports development in the Midway area as well, but not through Measure C -- which seeks to remove the coastal 30-foot height limit in the Midway area to allow for a stadium and affordable housing project there -- and only once "the proper infrastructure is in place." She backs police and says she wants them fairly compensated as well as to adopt a "community oriented policing" strategy.
District 4 | Monica Montgomery Steppe vs. Gloria Evangelista
Monica Montgomery Steppe opened with a sizable lead over Gloria Evangelista in the race for San Diego City Council District 4. On Friday night, results showed Montgomery Steppe (67%) in front of Evangelista (32%) by more than 5,500 votes.
Montgomery Steppe has held the District 4 seat since 2018 when she beat out then-incumbent Myrtle Cole.
The district represents Alta Vista, Broadway Heights, Chollas View, Emerald Hills, Encanto, Greater Skyline Hills, Jamacha, Lincoln Park, Lomita Village, North Bay Terrace, Oak Park, O'Farrell, Paradise Hills, Redwood Village, Rolando Park, South Bay Terrace, Valencia Park, and Webster.
Montgomery Steppe created the city's Office of Race and Equity, according to her website, and is a champion for economic opportunities for women, people of color and communities disproportionately impacted by the pandemic.
Evangelista is a dietician and registered Republican who says she's an advocate for infrastructure prioritization, environmental health and lowering the cost of living in San Diego, according to her campaign website.
District 6 | Tommy Hough vs. Kent Lee
Kent Lee (57%) is still in the lead against Tommy Hough (42%) in the race for San Diego City Council District 6, according to the San Diego County Registrar of Voters Office.
Lee edged out Hough in the June primary with 40.7% of the vote to Hough's 37.1% in a three-candidate primary. Now Lee and Hough are going head-to-head in their bids to replace termed-out Councilman Chris Cate -- the only Republican currently on the San Diego City Council.
Both men are Democrats, which leaves the very real prospect of no Republican representation on the technically nonpartisan nine-person council. The winner will represent the district that includes Clairemont, Kearny Mesa, Mira Mesa, Sorrento Valley and Rancho Peñasquitos.
Lee's campaign site says his priorities are housing and ending homelessness. Lee is a first-generation immigrant who studied at UC San Diego. He's endorsed by the San Diego County Democratic Party, the San Diego Small Business Association, the San Diego Police Officers Association, the San Diego Regional Chamber, Mayor Todd Gloria and Council President Sean Elo- Rivera.
Hough lost the District 6 race in 2018 to Cate, who is now termed out. A former local radio host, he serves as a county planning commissioner. Hough's website says District 6 has been "co-opted by Downtown special interests," and says he's running to restore the "heart of San Diego." He is endorsed by the San Diego Progressive Democrats Club and Planned Parenthood, the Sierra Club and the League of Conservation Voters.
District 8 | Vivian Moreno vs. Antonio Martinez
Vivian Moreno holds a commanding lead over Antonio Martinez in the race for San Diego City Council District 8, according to the registrar's office results.
Moreno is looking for a repeat of the primary election when she beat Martinez by nearly 27%. The 2018 General election was close, but Moreno still had the advantage by less than 2%, or about 550 votes and filled the seat vacated by David Alvarez who went on to represent California's 80th Assembly District.
Council District 8 includes the communities of Barrio Logan, Egger Highlands, Grant Hill, Logan Heights, Memorial, Nestor, Ocean View Hills, Otay Mesa East, Otay Mesa West, San Ysidro, Shelltown, Sherman Heights, Stockton, and Tijuana River Valley.
Moreno is endorsed by Rep. Scot Peters (D-CA 52) and Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-CA 53), and several city leaders in San Diego's South Bay. She serves as Chair of the Land Use and Housing Committee, Vice Chair of the Audit Committee, a member of the Committee on Public Safety and Livable Neighborhoods and Budget and Government Efficiency Committee. She is also a member of the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System Board, according to her campaign website.
Martinez is a lifelong District 8 resident, a community activist and a member of the San Ysidro School Board, according to his website. He is endorsed by Rep. Juan Vargas (D-CA 51) and serves as a community representative on Vargas' staff.
