For years, Coronado’s local elections were able to stay nonpartisan. Recently that has changed, greatly affecting the city council and mayoral races. NBC 7’s Joey Safchik reports.
Driving through Coronado, signs of the changing times are abundant. Literally. A blue wave of voter registration has hit the once reliably red island. Houses across the city have yard signs for national and local candidates on both sides of the aisle. In many instances, passers-by will see both parties represented on the same block.
“There’s become a greater divide within the country, which has filtered down into local communities as well,” said Mark Fleming, a candidate for city council. “I ran because I wanted to do what I could do to protect the character of Coronado.”
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With several local leadership positions up for grabs, the shifting demographics could reach city hall. Six candidates are running for two open council seats: Mark Fleming, Andrew Gade, Christine Mott, Laura Wilkinson Sinton, Amy Steward and Mark Warner. Fleming and Warner are endorsed by the San Diego Republican Party. Mott and Wilkinson Sinton have the backing of the San Diego County Democrats.
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Voters will see all six names on their ballot and are being asked to vote for two candidates. Councilmembers are city-wide representatives in Coronado.
“For so long, we’ve had kind of the same old faces," Mott said. "And those faces don’t necessarily represent our evolving community here. More people need to step up for the community — more women, people representing families.”
The seats are technically nonpartisan. While national political polarization has trickled down to local races, there is common ground on the issues facing the community and council. Namely: stormwater infrastructure and the Tijuana sewage crisis.
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“[The sewage crisis is] the No. 1 existential threat to our livelihoods, not only here in Coronado but in the whole South Bay area," Fleming said.
Mott believes local government in Coronado needs to up the ante on tackling the crisis and advocating for change in higher levels of government.
“We haven’t taken the steps on a local basis for our community, so there’s a lot to be done from the city council perspective, and I really would like to see more proactive leadership on that issue,” Mott said.
The mayor is the fifth member of the Coronado City Council. The current mayor is terming out, and three current councilmembers are vying for that job: Michael Donovan, John Duncan and Casey Tanaka. Tanaka and Donovan are both terming out of their council positions. If Duncan is elected mayor, he will vacate his council seat. The council will either have to appoint someone to fill it or hold a special election.
