Todd Gloria leads San Diego mayor's race by double digits

Todd Gloria is known to say he runs every race like he is 10 points behind. As of Wednesday afternoon, he is about 10 points ahead of challenger Larry Turner, but the latter has yet to concede the race.

“We will continue to do what it takes to keep our city safe, repair the roads, house our homeless and make sure that San Diegans can afford housing in our city,” Gloria said. “Whatever is thrown in our direction, we'll deal with. Whether that's a natural disaster, economic challenges, certainly political trauma at the national level. We have in the past. We'll handle it again.”

Chair Emeritus of the San Diego Democrats, Will Rodriguez-Kennedy, said Democrats locally need to lean into messaging about the issues voters care about, like their pocketbook, and not partisan politics.

“I really think that we as a party, and as activists and leaders in the city, should be focused less on the fact that we're Democrats,” said Rodriguez-Kennedy. “We are, but be focused on actually the values that that means. Americans are struggling with costs, they’re struggling with housing, they’re struggling with everyday things. We need to provide the solutions to those problems now. Americans are done with excuses.”

While Gloria seems to be headed toward to victory, it was a hard-fought battle. Two Democratic councilmembers also faced challengers this cycle, although their opponents were also Democrats. This could be a reckoning for local Democrats. Although they all seem to be on the track to win, it's clear there is some level of discontent within the party.

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For his part, though, Turner still thinks he has a path to victory. The day after the election, he released the following statement:

“It’s like being down a couple of touchdowns at halftime, but a new team of voters — independents — are coming in for the second half,” Turner said.

Turner's staff believes his candidacy can be salvaged by independents, who, Turner believes, he appeals to and "who tend to wait until Election Day to make their decisions, [and] were underrepresented" in the count up to this point.

“We’ve already seen the trend shift," Turner said. "As of the last update, I gained a larger percentage of votes from the 40,000 ballots added. With an estimated 200,000 more votes to be counted, particularly in San Diego, there’s every reason to think the gap could close or even reverse."

For his part, Gloria said on Election Night that his top priority will continue to be affordability.

“My commitment is always to stay focused on the needs of San Diegans, fixing our infrastructure, making sure working and middle-class people can afford to live in our city,” said Gloria. “I do sense anger and a frustration. It is not unique to San Diego. It's not unique to California. It's a national sentiment, and the best that I can do is just show progress each and every day on those priority issues.”

While San Diego Democrats performed well Tuesday, the national results cast a pall over their sunny day. Rodriguez-Kennedy said local Democrats will be on the frontlines as the onus falls on them to guard progress.

“Now, our elected officials, while the national party fails, our elected officials are the bulwark against tyranny,” said Rodriguez-Kennedy.