Rep. Mike Garcia, R-Santa Clarita, declared victory Friday in the race for the 25th Congressional District over opponent Assemblywoman Christy Smith, D-Santa Clarita.
“After a long, tough fight, I am proud to earn the privilege of serving CA-25 for another two years,” Garcia said in a press release. “With only a few remaining ballots to be counted, victory is clear.”
Smith did not concede, calling Garcia’s claimed victory “dangerous” in a statement issued soon after.
“With a mere 400-vote margin and thousands of ballots outstanding, election officials are diligently working to process ballots and accurately count all outstanding votes to ensure our communities are heard, and this race remains too close to call,” she said. ”The congressman’s decision is wholly inappropriate, and disrespectful of those who have taken the time to vote this year. Our county officials and Secretary of State Alex Padilla have done a phenomenal job of protecting every voter’s right to be heard in the most challenging election of our lifetime. We owe them and especially our voters our continued patience as the process is completed.”
The two candidates are separated by 400 votes, a gap that slightly narrowed Friday, a day after a 466-vote difference. With tallies added Friday by Los Angeles County election officials, Garcia led with 50.05% of the vote, or a total of 169,060, while Smith had earned 49.94% (168,660).
The 25th district encompasses portions of the Antelope, Santa Clarita and Simi valleys in both Ventura and Los Angeles counties.
California has yet to process 269,434 ballots as of Friday, which includes 41,230 in L.A. County. The county does not officially release the number of ballots remaining in a particular district, but according to a source familiar with the situation, L.A. County has approximately 2,500 ballots left to count for the 25th District.
Breakdown of additional races; state and congressional races according to California Secretary of State and local races according to L.A. County, unless otherwise indicated:
25th Congressional District
Mike Garcia (R, incumbent): 50.05%, 169,060.
Christy Smith (D): 49.94%, 168,660.
21st Senate District:
Scott Wilk (R, incumbent): 50.7%, 197,816.
Kipp Muller (D): 49.2%, 191,650.
27th Senate District
Henry Stern (D, incumbent): 60.1%, 284,088.
Houman Salem (R): 39.8%, 187,928.
36th Assembly District
Tom Lackey (R, incumbent): 54.1%, 91,927.
Steve Fox (D): 45.8%, 77,940.
38th Assembly District
Suzette Valladares (R): 76.1%, 148,740.
Lucie Volotzky (R): 23.9%, 46,745.
City Council (top two of nine candidates win)
Cameron Smyth: 31.25%, 56,709.
Jason Gibbs: 16.19%, 29,388.
Kelvin Driscoll: 14.44%, 26,201.
Chris Werthe: 11.10%. 20,138.
TimBen Boydston: 9.74%, 17,673.
Aakash Ahuja: 7.85%, 14,240.
Selina Thomas: 7.45%, 13,512.
Kenneth Dean: 1.51%, 2,744.
Douglas Fraser: 0.48%, 868.
SCV Water Agency (top two in each division win)
Division 1
- Gary Martin (incumbent): 32.97%, 19,077.
- Beth Braunstein: 26.96%, 15,599.
- Karla Waymire: 20.90%, 12,095.
- Christine Okamoto: 19.16%, 11,087.
Division 2
- Ed Colley (incumbent): 33.92%, 22,627.
- Piotr Orzechowski: 30.50%, 20,348.
- Valerie Bradford: 19.02%, 12,685.
- Anna Kumar: 16.56%, 11,044.
Division 3
- BJ Atkins (incumbent): 28.54%, 16,829.
- Kathye Armitage: 24.30%, 14,333.
- Maria Gutzeit (incumbent): 24.13%, 14,228.
- Stacy Fortner: 23.03%, 13,583.
SCV school boards
William S. Hart Union High School District
Trustee Area No. 1
- Linda Storli (incumbent): 45.63%, 10,107.
- Alyssa Williams: 35.29%, 7,818.
- Gordon Kirkpatrick: 19.08%, 4,226.
Trustee Area No. 4
- James Webb: 55.47%, 14,150.
- Steve Sturgeon (Incumbent): 44.53%, 11,357.
Saugus Union School District
Trustee Area No. 3
- Katherine Cooper: 51.46%, 4,742.
- Christian Gadbois: 48.54%, 4,473.
Trustee Area No. 4
- Matthew Watson: 64.28%, 7,323.
- Sage Rafferty: 35.72%, 4,070.
College of the Canyons
Trustee Area No. 2
- Edel Alonso (incumbent): 58.93%, 14,010.
- Tony Watson: 41.07%, 9,762.
Trustee Area No. 3
- Sebastian Cazares: 51.98%. 13,571.
- Fred Arnold: 48.02%, 12,536.
Trustee Area No. 4
- Michelle Jenkins (incumbent): 50.40%, 13,262.
- Jerry Danielsen: 49.60%, 13,053.
L.A. County Measure J
- Yes: 57.12%, 2.15 million.
- No: 42.88%, 1.61 million.
