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Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton stopped by Santa Barbara for a quick private event Saturday afternoon after a rally at Hueneme High School in Oxnard.
Her campaign plane landed at the Santa Barbara Airport, and a motorcade drove to the event at Jill’s Place restaurant downtown around 4:15 p.m.
Clinton, a former secretary of state and first lady, is locked in a tight battle with Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination, with polls showing the two close in California ahead of Tuesday’s primary election.
Santa Barbara police and other authorities blocked off the 600 block of Santa Barbara Street and sidewalks for the event, and a few people gathered on either end of the street closure to await the motorcade.
Among the attendees for the small event were local elected Democrats, including Rep. Lois Capps; state Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson; Santa Barbara County District Attorney Joyce Dudley; county Supervisors Salud Carbajal, Doreen Farr and Janet Wolf; Goleta City Councilwoman Paula Perotte; Santa Barbara Mayor Helene Schneider and City Council members Gregg Hart and Cathy Murillo; and Santa Barbara Unified School District trustee Monique Límon.
“I believe she’ll be our next president,” Murillo told Noozhawk before the event.
Clinton’s motorcade left downtown Santa Barbara around 5:30 p.m. and she never appeared in public outside the event.
A group of protesters gathered across the street from Jill’s Place with signs and the occasional chant, and a few dozen people gathered at the intersection near the event — some were supporters of Clinton and some of Sanders.
Sanders was in Santa Barbara County one week ago, holding rallies last weekend at Santa Barbara City College and Santa Maria High School, each with an estimated 6,000 people attending.
— Noozhawk managing editor Giana Magnoli can be reached at gmagnoli@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
(Urban Hikers / Noozhawk video)
