Gay Democratic San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria won a hard-fought race to keep his job in the November 5 election. The leader of a major American border city is likely to take on an even greater national role during his second term with Republican President-elect Donald Trump headed back to the White House pledging to crack down on border security and illegal immigration.
Coming out of the summer, polling had suggested he was in a tighter than expected race with his opponent, independent Larry Turner, a police officer and Marine Corps veteran. But new polling ahead of Tuesday's election found Gloria running away with the race to remain the only out mayor among the Golden State's top 10 municipalities.
The Filipino politician, who served on the San Diego City Council before being elected to the state Assembly, became the first gay elected mayor of one of California's five largest cities four years ago. Based on the unofficial returns, he won his race with nearly 55% of the vote.
Declaring victory late Wednesday afternoon, Gloria thanked his supporters for "giving him the honor" of leading the city through 2028.
"Please accept my heartfelt thank you for helping me win re-election as San Diego's mayor," wrote Gloria in an emailed message. "With last night's strong results, we have an incredible opportunity to move San Diego forward on all the critical issues we talked about in this campaign, and that's in big part thanks to you."
Facing one of the toughest election fights among LGBTQ incumbents in California had been San Diego County Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer, a Democrat who is nonbinary and pansexual. She found herself having to fend off a tough challenge for her District 3 seat from Republican former San Diego mayor Kevin Faulconer.
He hit Lawson-Remer over her handling of homelessness issues and positions on local taxes, while she criticized Faulconer for opposing a minimum wage increase for fast food workers and supporting the construction of mega-mansions in critical wildlife habitat. Millions poured into their race, as Republicans needed to defeat Lawson-Remer to regain a three-person majority on the five-person governing body.
So far, Lawson-Remer is leading in the race with 56% of the vote but has yet to declare victory. The county still has around 500,000 ballots to process and will next post an update Friday by 6 p.m.
Santa Cruz County
In Santa Cruz County, mental health services nonprofit and queer mom Monica Martinez is set to become her county's first out supervisor. She had nearly won outright the open District 5 supervisorial seat in the coastal county in March.
But Martinez, while endorsed by outgoing Supervisor Bruce McPherson, fell short of the 50%-plus-one threshold needed to avoid a runoff race in November. It meant a prolonged campaign for the seat against Christopher Bradford, who had placed a distant second in the primary.
Bradford lost his home in the 2020 CZU fire that devastated the region. Martinez and her family had to evacuate their home in Felton for a month due to the conflagration.
Addressing the needs of their neighbors, from fire mitigation to water service, was a large focus in their race. The seat covers the mostly unincorporated San Lorenzo Valley region of the county.
In the weeks leading up to Tuesday's election, renewed attention had been placed on the finances of the nonprofit Martinez leads, Encompass Community Services. She also faced questions about a lawsuit it was involved in half a decade ago with its nonprofit real estate partner agency that was settled out of court.
In the end, it didn't dent her ability to claim the supervisor seat. She had a commanding first-place standing at 56.37% of the vote.
Other races
In nearby Monterey, gay incumbent Mayor Tyller Williamson easily won a second term. He is leading his race with 68% of the vote, with an update in the vote count scheduled for Friday (November 8).
In one of the more closely watched city council races in the Golden State, queer tenants' rights lawyer Ysabel Jurado secured a historic win and returns LGBTQ representation to the Los Angeles City Council. The single mom will be the governing body's first Filipina member.
The Los Angeles native, raised by a single mom in the Highland Park neighborhood, ran to oust from office disgraced City Councilmember Kevin de León. He bucked calls to resign from his District 14 seat stemming from the leaked recording in 2022 that had caught him making racist comments.
The progressive Jurado stunned the city's political establishment in March when she took first in the primary race. LPAC, which backs out women and gender-nonconforming candidates, was the lone LGBTQ group to endorse at the time.
It and Jurado declared victory in the fall runoff race on Thursday, with LPAC Executive Director Janelle Perez calling Jurado "a true leader for the people of Los Angeles. She has fought tirelessly for affordable housing and tenant's rights, and brings her own life experience as an openly LGBTQ+ single mother."
Jurado thanked LPAC for its early support of her candidacy and assisting her throughout the campaign.
"This has been a long journey and we couldn't have made it to the finish line without LPAC by our side," stated Jurado. "Since the primary, LPAC has worked hand in hand with us to activate our communities and galvanize our neighbors."
Various other LGBTQ groups endorsed her in the runoff, and Jurado had been gliding on a relatively smooth path toward victory in the November 5 contest. But her quoting a "F— the police" song lyric in response to a question posed by, it would later be revealed, a de León staffer and leaked to a local news outlet in late October created a last-minute bump in her campaign.
While some speculated it would upend her election, the contretemps over her reply didn't cost her in the end. She currently stands in first place with 55.78% of the vote.
Her victory is an early birthday gift, as Jurado turns 35 on November 28. That Thursday also happens to be Thanksgiving this year.
Keep abreast of the latest LGBTQ political news by following the Political Notebook on Threads @ https://www.threads.net/@matthewbajko.
Got a tip on LGBTQ politics? Call Matthew S. Bajko at (415) 829-8836 or email [email protected]
Never miss a story! Keep up to date on the latest news, arts, politics, entertainment, and nightlife.
Sign up for the Bay Area Reporter's free weekday email newsletter. You'll receive our newsletters and special offers from our community partners.
Support California's largest LGBTQ newsroom. Your one-time, monthly, or annual contribution advocates for LGBTQ communities. Amplify a trusted voice providing news, information, and cultural coverage to all members of our community, regardless of their ability to pay -- Donate today!