In the San Diego area, the fall election brought victories for most CAAPAC-supported candidates for local office.
Here’s how the local elections broke down:
San Diego County
In the race for District 4 supervisor, CAAPAC-backed candidate Nathan Fletcher, who is on record opposing rent control, won with 66.54 percent of the vote. With his victory, Fletcher will be the only Democrat on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors, a trend expected to continue in future elections throughout San Diego County.
City of San Diego
District 6 Councilman Chris Cate, a pro-business incumbent supported by CAAPAC, won re-election to the City Council with 54.89 percent of the vote.
In District 2, CAAPAC-supported incumbent Lori Zapf was defeated by Jennifer Campbell. Zapf garnered 42.86 percent of the vote compared with 57.14 percent for Campbell. This race marks the first time in 27 years that a sitting San Diego council member has lost a re-election bid.
In District 8, Vivian Moreno, who has been outspoken about her opposition to rent control, garnered 51.77 percent of the vote to beat Antonio Martinez.
CAA San Diego believes that increasing the housing supply is the best way to moderate prices, and the association looks forward to working with Councilman Cate and council members-elect Campbell and Moreno to generate more rental housing in the area.
National City
As previously reported, a campaign led by the California Apartment Association has defeated a rent control and “just cause” eviction initiative in National City. With 100 percent of precincts reporting, the measure was rejected with 53.82 percent of the vote. By defeating Measure W, National City’s rental housing industry has been saved from the imposition of rent control on pre-1995 multifamily housing. The National City Residents for Fair & Equitable Housing, the campaign coalition that spearheaded the opposition to Measure W, will continue to meet and advocate on behalf of the rental housing industry as rent control is still very much a threat in the region.
