(Mar. 26, 2019, 11:25 p.m.) -- In a political stunner, with nearly no reported campaign contributions to date, Cudahy Councilman Jack Guerrero (a Harvard/Stanford degreed CPA and Republican urging changes in Sacramento policies and greater fiscal discipline) has forced Long Beach Councilman Lena Gonzalez (a Democrat supported by over $1.1 million in campaign spending [her own and independent committees] and echoing Sacramento-favored stances) into a June 4th runoff in the Long Beach-southeast L.A. County 33rd state Senate district.
In unofficial returns (with additional vote by mail and provisional ballots remaining to be counted), LB Councilwoman Gonzalez finished with 8,070 votes (30.60%) and Cudahy Councilman Guerrero second 4,224 votes (14.86). The rest followed in single-digits.
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In a state Senate district (map below) with roughly 55% registered Democrats, 28% "decline to state" and barely 12% Republicans.
LB Councilwoman Councilwoman Gonzalez had the endorsements of immediate past state Senator Ricardo Lara, LB Mayor Robert Garcia, L.A. County Supervisor Janice Hahn and Congressman Alan Lowenthal plus campaign contributors from oil, development, corporate and organized labor to her campaign, amplified by roughly $1.1 million in independent expenditures by an oil-company funded PAC campaign on top of over $175,000 in independent spending by the L.A. County Federation of Labor. Gonzalez also touted the endorsement of the LB Council's sole nominal Republican, Stacy Mungo (who when asked by LBREPORT.com didn't respond but hasn't denied that she endorsed Gonzalez.)
Cudahy Councilman Guerrero jumped to an early lead in vote-by-mail ballots and held it; vote-by-mail ballots ultimately accounted for over 71.24% of ballots cast in the low-turnout special election to fill a vacancy created when state Senator lara was elected state Insurance Commissioner. Bell Councilman Ali Saleh, a Dem, finished third with Martha Flores Gibson, a LB Republican who'd lost three previous Assembly races, finishing seventh. The ballot listed twelve candidates (9 Dems, 2 Repubs and 1 Green) but one of the Dems, LB Councilman Al Austin, who'd begun raising funds for the potential state Senate vacancy in the second half of 2017, abruptly ended campaigning on Feb. 1, 2019 after Gonzalez rolled out endorsements by now-Insurance Commissioner Lara, LB Mayor Garcia and multiple organized labor groups. Austin's name on the ballot drew over 1,177 votes cast (4.14%.) LB Councilman Austin made no endorsement in the race..
In campaign appearances, Mr. Guerrero has called for changes in current Sacramento practices and cited his Harvard/Stanford economic training and CPA expertise in urging greater fiscal discipline in state spending and less government intervention and control as the way to greter prosperity. LB Councilwoman Gonzalez's stances on the LB City Council items and as indicated in her campaign mailers and website statements parallel positions favored by Sacramento's Democrat leadership on issues including low income housing, state involvement in local land use control, homeless spending and other issues. LB Councilwoman Gonzalez favors a state-run ("single payer") health care system; Councilman Guerrero opposes it. Councilwoman Gonzalez was endorsed by the CA Teachers Association (union); Cudahy Councilman Guerrero supports parental economic choice in schools (vouchers).
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