The deadline has come and gone for vote-by-mail ballots to arrive at the Monterey County Elections Department, reflected in the latest count, reported at 3:47pm on Wednesday, Nov. 13, eight days after Election Day.
The updated report for turnout shows 131,699 registered voters in Monterey County cast ballots, bringing turnout to 61 percent. The overwhelming majority of voters this year voted by mail, accounting for 122,402 ballots counted.
The voter breakdown as of 3:47pm Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024.
The updated results show some margins narrowing and others widening in close races, but mostly, the results remain unchanged.
In the Monterey City Council race for District 3, Jean Rasch has led over Eric Palmer by a handful of votes in each report since election night, and she currently maintains a lead of 21 votes, with 50.46 percent of the vote.
In Seaside, the three incumbents retain strong leads in their races for mayor and City Council, but an early lead for Measure CC, which would ban so-called "safe-and-sane" fireworks in the city, is now losing by a 646-vote margin, with 53.5-percent no votes.
The results for Pacific Grove City Council and mayor remain unchanged since the last update on Friday, Nov. 8, with Paul Walkingstick, Chaps Poduri and Tina Rau in position to land three open seats. Rau leads the current fourth-highest vote-getter, incumbent Luke Coletti, by 99 votes.
In Sand City, Luke Kilpatrick has fallen behind in a three-person race for two seats. Incumbent Marilee Diaz leads with 78 votes, and Michelle Adams is now in second with 72 votes. Kilpatrick trails with 67 votes.
In Salinas, all of the projected winners as of Election Day maintain their leads: Dennis Donohue for mayor, and Jose Luis Barajas, Margaret D'Arrigo, Gloria De La Rosa and Aurelio Salazar Jr. for council. In District 4, incumbent Orlando Osornio now trails behind De La Rosa—who endorsed him four years ago before returning from retirement to run against him—by 88 votes, shrinking but not closing the gap.
The next ballot count from the Elections Department is expected on Friday, Nov. 15.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.