John Phillips beats activist Ed Mitchell in District 2 county supervisor runoff to succeed Lou Calcagno.

Servers were pouring quality local wines—Estancia Chardonnay and Scheid Grenache Blanc—at Haute Enchilada in Moss Landing for John Phillips’ victory party on Tuesday night, but even with the wine, a dance floor, and promising early voting returns, Phillips was reluctant to celebrate.

“I’m cautiously optimistic,” he said before the first round of precinct reporting.

When supporters pulled up the first election results shortly after 8pm, someone called to Phillips, “You’re up, 56 percent.” He kept a perfect poker face, no smile or expression of celebration.

After the early returns, his reaction was unchanged. “I’m cautiously optimistic,” said Phillips, a retired Monterey County Superior Court judge. The waiting, he added, is like waiting for a jury to come in and begin a trial. “Probably the most jittery I’ve been in my life is waiting for a jury. This is similar—you don’t have any control any more, it’s out of your hands and there’s nothing you can do.”

With all precincts counted, Phillips was leading opponent Ed Mitchell by 842 votes, a substantial 10-point margin, as of Wednesday morning.

"I appreciate all of you who supported the vision we had for North Salinas and North County,” Mitchell said in an emailed statement. “There are hard, complex decisions ahead of the board of supervisors. I encourage you to remain participants in those decisions and offer your suggestions to our new supervisor."

The race is to fill retiring Supervisor Lou Calcagno’s seat, which the Moss Landing dairyman has held for 16 years, representing North County.

Calcagno is among the list of influencers who encouraged Phillips to run for the vacant seat. Since then, supporters have rolled in, including a number of heavy-hitters. A who’s who of judges and prosecutors attended the party at Haute Enchilada, including District Attorney Dean Flippo, his second-in-command Berkley Brannon, newly elected Judge Heidi Whilden, and retired DA Bill Curtis.

With a $700 gift, Curtis was a small donor to Phillips’ campaign, which brought in more than $360,000, about three times as much as Mitchell. Phillips’ biggest donors were the Monterey County Business PAC ($19,000) and Salinas Valley Leadership Group PAC ($20,000), founded and chaired by Don Chapin, who also serves on the board of Rancho Cielo, an alternative youth program Phillips founded in Salinas.

“I always felt as a judge, if I was provided with all the facts, I could make a well-informed, fair decision unencumbered by any outside influences,” Phillips told the Weekly earlier this election cycle. “I think I could continue to do that.”  

Some issues heading to the Board of Supervisors in the near future include a possible sunshine ordinance on transparency, a moratorium on fracking (which Mitchell supports, and San Benito County voters overwhelmingly passed a ban on Tuesday, despite being outspent by the industry), and a land-use decision on the proposed Ferrini Ranch development along Highway 68.