SALINAS VALLEY — In the Nov. 5 Presidential General Election, the latest results on Friday showed strong competition for seats on South Monterey County school boards, the Soledad Community Health Care District, and city councils in Greenfield and King City.
Voter turnout so far reached 49.24%, or 105,798 votes out of 214,883 registered voters in Monterey County.
Additional results are expected to be released Wednesday by Monterey County Elections, which is still processing more than 40,000 ballots remaining to be counted.
School board elections
In the South Monterey County Joint Union High School District race for two board seats, incumbent David Gaboni leads with 2,260 votes, or 36.71% of the total counted. He is followed by Mindy Hunt, a business services analyst, with 2,004 votes (32.55%). Appointed incumbent Maria De Lourdes Villarreal is in third with 1,892 votes (30.73%).
Over at the Greenfield Union Elementary School District for Trustee Area 5, both candidates running are current board members. Sonia Martinez-Heredia currently holds a lead with 261 votes (52.73%), while Jose Madrid follows with 234 votes (47.27%).
San Ardo Union Elementary School District race for two board seats shows Alexis E. Martinez, an appointed incumbent, leading with 63 votes (38.89%). Incumbent Salvador Macias follows with 56 votes (34.57%), trailed by Malichane “Mali” Sayarath, a parent, with 43 votes (26.54%).
Health care directors
In the Soledad Community Health Care District election for three director seats, results show Maria E. Schell, a nurse practitioner, in the lead with 1,678 votes (29.83%). Rosemary Guidotti, an incumbent, follows with 1,219 votes (21.67%), and incumbent Graig R. Stephens holds 1,120 votes (19.91%). Daniel Vargas, an entrepreneur and consultant, has 860 votes (15.29%), and Ken Klemme, a CEO and biologist, trails with 749 votes (13.31%).
City council races
In King City, incumbent Robert Cullen has won re-election to his District 5 seat on the city council, defeating challenger Jonas Lalehzadeh. Cullen, a local small business owner, received 168 votes, representing 63.88% of the vote, while Lalehzadeh, a farmer and first-time candidate, garnered 95 votes, or 36.12%, in the latest results.
Cullen has served as a council member for the past 16 years, including six years as mayor of King City.
“During this time, our community has seen significant progress in areas such as public safety, downtown improvements, recreation programs and more,” according to Cullen’s candidate statement. “Your City Council has worked tirelessly, and I am eager to continue serving the residents of King City for the next four years.”
Also up for election were incumbents Carlos DeLeon and Carlos Victoria, both of whom ran unopposed in their respective Districts 3 and 4.
In Greenfield, incumbent Ariana Rodriguez has successfully defended her city council seat for District 4. Rodriguez, a college program coordinator who joined the council last year, secured 285 votes, or 59.87%, against challenger Cynthia Zavala, who earned 191 votes, or 40.13%, as of the latest results.
“I have only been on council for one year and have not nearly made the impact I aspire to in our city,” according to Rodriguez in her candidate statement. “I hope to … continue my effort to affect positive change in our community and foster a sense of safety, support and unity for residents.”
Meanwhile, the race for Greenfield’s District 1 seat remains closely contested. Belen Garcia, a retired educator, currently leads with 262 votes (54.13%) over Stephanie J. Garcia, a litigation paralegal, who has 222 votes (45.87%).
Marcy Jones, an HR manager, ran unopposed for District 2 on the Greenfield City Council.
In both Soledad and Gonzales, candidates for city council and mayor faced no opposition, securing their positions unopposed.
Soledad Mayor Anna Velazquez and District 4 Council Member Evarista Banuelos were both re-elected, while District 3 candidate Benjamin Caldera Garcia obtained a seat on the Soledad City Council.
Also re-elected were Gonzales Mayor Jose Rios and District 2 Council Member Scott Funk on the Gonzales City Council.
For complete statewide election results, visit electionresults.sos.ca.gov.
