Assemblywoman Christy Smith, D-Santa Clarita, conceded Monday in the 25th Congressional District race as final ballot counts from L.A. and Ventura counties confirmed the reelection of Rep. Mike Garcia, R-Santa Clarita.
Ahead of California’s election certification deadline, Los Angeles and Ventura counties certified their results Monday, locking in several local elections and updating the congressional district race, which was considered among the state’s closest contests.
Monday’s certified results showed that Garcia had pulled in 169,638 votes, or 50.05%, and Smith had received 169,305 (49.95%) — a difference that had drawn closer from a gap of 405 last week to 333 votes.
The assemblywoman said Monday she would not be able to close the razor-thin gap despite efforts “to cure hundreds of votes throughout the district that otherwise may not have been counted.”
“With final votes counted in this race, it’s clear we will not be able to close the 339-vote gap,” she said, “This is not the end result we fought for, but I am proud of the strong, grassroots campaign we ran.”
Garcia, who had declared victory on Nov. 20, also issued a prepared statement on Monday after Smith’s statement, declaring himself once again as the victor.
“I am once again honored to represent CA-25 during this pivotal time in our country’s history,” he said. “I remain committed to protecting the Constitution, fighting for the longevity of our nation and ensuring we invest in our public’s safety and our collective national security.”
Smith also welcomed Assemblywoman-elect Suzette Valladares for a transition meeting and issued a prepared statement thanking her staff and constituents for the opportunity to serve the 38th District.
“It has been an immense privilege to serve the communities of the 38th Assembly District for the last two years,” she said, in part. “In our time in office I authored 10 bills that were signed into law and co-authored over a dozen others. These measures expanded educational opportunities, wildfire protections, homeowner protections, crime victim’s compensation, college savings opportunities, workers’ rights, small business rights and environmental safeguards.”
California Secretary of State Alex Padilla has until Dec. 11 to certify the elections within the state. San Bernardino County is expected to certify their election results Tuesday.
Breakdown of state elections and local, certified races according to L.A. County:
25th Congressional District
Mike Garcia (R, incumbent): 50.05%, 169,638.
Christy Smith (D): 49.95%, 169,305.
21st Senate District:
Scott Wilk (R, incumbent): 50.8%, 199,206.
Kipp Muller (D): 49.2%, 193,050.
27th Senate District
Henry Stern (D, incumbent): 60.2%, 284,797.
Houman Salem (R): 39.8%, 188,421.
36th Assembly District
Tom Lackey (R, incumbent): 55.1%, 102,433.
Steve Fox (D): 44.8%, 83,235.
38th Assembly District
Suzette Valladares (R): 76.1%, 149,201.
Lucie Volotzky (R): 23.9%, 46,877.
City Council (top two of nine candidates win)
Cameron Smyth: 31.26%, 56,919.
Jason Gibbs: 16.19%, 29,474.
Kelvin Driscoll: 14.44%, 26,282.
Chris Werthe: 11.09%. 20,194.
TimBen Boydston: 9.73%, 17,724.
Aakash Ahuja: 7.85%, 14,300.
Selina Thomas: 7.44%, 13,554.
Kenneth Dean: 1.51%, 2,750.
Douglas Fraser: 0.48%, 871.
SCV Water Agency (top two in each division win)
Division 1
- Gary Martin (incumbent): 32.98%, 19,135.
- Beth Braunstein: 26.96%, 15,643.
- Karla Waymire: 20.90%, 12,127.
- Christine Okamoto: 19.17%, 11,122.
Division 2
- Ed Colley (incumbent): 33.93%, 22,703.
- Piotr Orzechowski: 30.51%, 20,417.
- Valerie Bradford: 19.02%, 12,725.
- Anna Kumar: 16.55%, 11,074.
Division 3
- BJ Atkins (incumbent): 28.53%, 16,883.
- Kathye Armitage: 24.31%, 14,382.
- Maria Gutzeit (incumbent): 24.12%, 14,271.
- Stacy Fortner: 23.04%, 13,632.
SCV school boards
William S. Hart Union High School District
Trustee Area No. 1
- Linda Storli (incumbent): 45.62%, 10,140.
- Alyssa Williams: 35.31%, 7,847.
- Gordon Kirkpatrick: 19.07%, 4,238.
Trustee Area No. 4
- James Webb: 55.47%, 14,198.
- Steve Sturgeon (Incumbent): 44.53%, 11,397.
Saugus Union School District
Trustee Area No. 3
- Katherine Cooper: 51.50%, 4,758.
- Christian Gadbois: 48.50%, 4,481.
Trustee Area No. 4
- Matthew Watson: 64.25%, 7,346.
- Sage Rafferty: 35.75%, 4,087.
College of the Canyons
Trustee Area No. 2
- Edel Alonso (incumbent): 58.96%, 14,061.
- Tony Watson: 41.04%, 9,788.
Trustee Area No. 3
- Sebastian Cazares: 51.98%. 13,608.
- Fred Arnold: 48.02%, 12,572.
Trustee Area No. 4
- Michelle Jenkins (incumbent): 50.38%, 13,306.
- Jerry Danielsen: 49.62%, 13,103.
L.A. County Measure J
- Yes: 57.12%, 2.15 million.
- No: 42.88%, 1.62 million.
