The two candidates running for the District 3 seat on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors have each landed key endorsements in the past week.
Encinitas Mayor Kristin Gaspar, a Republican, is challenging incumbent Supervisor Dave Roberts, a Democrat, in the November election.
District 3 stretches from Del Mar to Tierrasanta, north of Escondido. It has slightly more Republican than Democratic registered voters, with a growing number of registered independents.
The first elected county official to make an endorsement in the race was County Clerk/Assessor/Recorder Ernest Dronenburg. He has come out in favor of Gaspar.
“She’s a very non-partisan person, she is not talking about (how) she has a Republican or a Democratic agenda. What she’s talking about are the issues that concern me,” Dronenburg said. “That’s small businessman and great customer service.”
Since 1992, the board has remained mostly unchanged — until Roberts replaced Pam Slater-Price in 2012.
Slater-Price endorsed Roberts to succeed her in 2012. But she hesitated to endorse Roberts before the June primary, but now says legal problems he faced during his first term in office were partly due to the adjustment he had to make coming from a small city council to the powerful board.
“There was some learning curve involved and I think that he is now passed that,” she said. “I think that he’s doing an excellent job. The truth of the matter is, he’s the only one right on the issues.”
Because of term limits voted into place in 2010, supervisors will now serve a maximum of two four-year terms.
Dronenburg said the new term limits make this November’s election for the District 3 seat especially important. If Gaspar wins the seat, in 2020 she would be the longest serving member of the board. By that point, all the current members of the board would be termed out.
“I think it’s very important that someone that I think is a great candidate be there to lead the next succeeding board,” Dronenburg said.
Gaspar has a political history similar to Slater-Price.
Slater-Price was also the mayor of Encinitas. She was elected to represent District 3 on the county board in 1992 and held the seat for 20 years.
Slater-Price was recognized as a moderate Republican. But she said voters should not assume Gaspar is one, too.
“Frankly, I’m a little bit dismayed,” Slater-Price said. “I don’t think her values are mine. Her support comes from the Building Industry Association, the Board of Realtors. She endorses Donald Trump.”
Slater-Price said she supports Roberts on the issues of preservation of quality of life and the environment.
Roberts is the only Democrat on the five member Board of Supervisors.
