[Editor’s note: Superior Court judicial candidates John MacKinnon and Jed Beebe will meet in a November run-off. An earlier version of this article was incorrect and has been corrected below.]
Doreen Farr, the favorite of the Democratic Party establishment on the South Coast, and underdog Los Olivos independent Steve Pappas will square off in a Nov. 4 run-off to determine the next 3rd District Santa Barbara County supervisor. With 100 percent of the votes counted early Wednesday, Farr led Pappas, 35.71 percent to 25.02 percent in unofficial returns. A simple majority of votes was needed in the five-candidate race to win the seat outright.
Finishing third in Tuesday’s primary was former Solvang Mayor Dave Smyser, who was vying to succeed his former boss, retiring Supervisor Brooks Firestone.
Meanwhile, Measure V, a $77 million construction bond initiative for Santa Barbara City College, was approved handily, 69.92 percent to 30.08 percent. To pass, the measure needed the backing of 55 percent of voters.
Although the Board of Supervisors is a nonpartisan body, in reality it’s anything but. Santa Barbara County is roughly split between the Democrat-leaning South Coast and the Republican-leaning North County. The 3rd District — encompassing the Goleta Valley, Isla Vista and the Santa Ynez Valley — has long been a swing district, and Firestone often votes with fellow North County Supervisors Joe Centeno and Joni Gray.If elected, Farr is expected to side with South Coast Supervisors Salud Carbajal and Janet Wolf. Carbajal and Gray were re-elected Tuesday in the 1st and 4th districts, respectively.
Firestone had thrown his support behind Smyser, a fellow Republican, but he finished with only 21.08 percent of the vote. The wild card in the race was Pappas, a Los Olivos school board member who is registered as a “nonpartisan” and had earned the endorsement of the UCSB student newspaper, the Daily Nexus.
On Tuesday night, speaking from his campaign celebration at Montero Farm in Los Olivos, Pappas, 48, explained his switch to nonpartisan status from Republican four years ago, during his then-unsuccessful campaign for the 3rd District seat.
“Since I wasn’t part of the establishment of either side, I knew I couldn’t get the support for either side,” he said. “It was a reality check for me.
“I’m the product of a real grass-roots campaign,” he added. “We weren’t endorsed or pushed by any political machine — just an average guy that just evolved. I believe that makes us different.”
The nonpartisan affiliation is different than the Independent Party in that the former is not an official party.
As the results were coming in Tuesday night, the front-running Farr chose her words carefully.
“The night’s not ever yet. We’ll see,” the Santa Ynez Valley resident said at her campaign party at Hollister Brewing Co. at Camino Real Marketplace. “My priorities have been policy and process. Some good community planning, working on the Gaviota coast, a lot of environmental issues, preserving agriculture. Public safety; I’m proud to have the endorsements of the firefighters.”
A former county planning commissioner, Farr has sought the closure of embattled Greka Oil Co., which seems unable to stop its incessant North County leaks. She also has been critical of Firestone on several counts, such as his consideration to move time allotted for public comment to the end of the board’s public meetings, and his stance against earmarking $1 million for providing health insurance for uncovered children.
Farr is backed by most of the South Coast’s major Democratic Party players: Rep. Lois Capps, five of the seven members of the liberal-leaning Santa Barbara City Council, Carbajal, Wolf and others. She also was endorsed by the Santa Barbara Independent.
For his part, Pappas has promised to reach out to Isla Vista by making sure residents are satisfied with the Isla Vista Master Plan, and to UCSB by promising to form a university advisory commission with faculty and student members.
Finishing fourth Tuesday was physician David Bearman with 9.91 percent and Buellton City Councilwoman Victoria Pointer with 8.02 percent.
In the 4th District, Gray beat challenger John Sterling, 57.43 percent to 42.30 percent. Carbajal was unopposed in the 1st District.
In the four-way race to succeed Santa Barbara County Superior Court Judge Diana Hall, who is stepping down, John MacKinnon led Jed Beebe, 39.64 percent to 21.60 percent. Because neither candidate won a majority, a November run-off will decide the outcome.
Click here for complete Santa Barbara County election results.
Across California, Proposition 98, an anti-eminent-domain measure that also would prohibit rent control, was headed for defeat. Proposition 99, an anti-eminent-domain measure that would not, was headed for victory. Click here for Tuesday’s statewide election results.
Noozhawk staff writer Rob Kuznia can be reached at rkuznia@noozhawk.com.
