San Diego City Council Election Results Put Four Runoff Leaders Ahead
San Diego City Council runoffs show Martha Abraham, Nicole Crosby, Antonio Martinez, and incumbent Kent Lee holding comfortable leads as the Registrar of Voters finishes counting Election Day ballots. While roughly 540,000 late-arriving ballots still require processing, those remaining votes are unlikely to upend the current margins across the four districts.
District 4 Battle Tests Incumbency
In southeastern District 4, political novice Martha Abraham leads incumbent Henry Foster by 1,585 votes in a Democrat-versus-Democrat contest. If Abraham’s lead holds, it marks only the third time since 1992 that an incumbent San Diego councilmember has lost a re-election bid. Only two prior defeats have occurred in that timeframe: Lorie Zapf in District 2 and Myrtle Cole in District 4, both during the 2018 election cycle.
The race has exposed deep divisions among local political factions and labor groups. Mayor Todd Gloria worked to rally opposition against Foster, who has served as perhaps the mayor’s most vocal critic on the council. Conversely, progressive members of the council backed Foster’s campaign. Union endorsements split as well, with the Municipal Employees Association backing Foster through mailers, while the firefighters union threw its support behind Abraham.
Coastal District 2 and South Bay District 8 Shifts
In coastal District 2, Democrat Nicole Crosby leads independent Richard Bailey by 3,044 votes. A victory for Crosby would keep the City Council entirely Democratic while adding a third former deputy city attorney to the council. Independent expenditure committees supporting both candidates poured more than $750,000 into the coastal race this fall, which has focused on municipal jobs, developer funding, and local infrastructure needs like sidewalks and streetlights.
In South Bay District 8, San Ysidro schools trustee Antonio Martinez holds a 2,639-vote lead over Gerardo Ramirez, chief of staff to outgoing Councilmember Vivian Moreno. If Martinez wins, the district will experience a shift away from Assemblymember David Alvarez and his former staffers for the first time since 2010. The campaign featured aggressive mailers and large donations as both candidates vied to position themselves as outsiders.
Kent Lee Leads Mark Powell in District 6 Race
In District 6, incumbent Kent Lee leads Republican Mark Powell by 5,200 votes as he seeks a second four-year term representing Mira Mesa, University City, and surrounding north central neighborhoods. Housing development incentives served as a primary point of contention during the campaign, with Powell criticizing policies that Lee has largely supported.
San Diego Registrar Processes Remaining Ballots
The San Diego Registrar of Voters must still process approximately 540,000 late-arriving ballots. Those ballots are unlikely to change the results of the four council races.