The San Diego County Board of Supervisors voted 4-0 Tuesday to delay selection of a new chair, vice chair and pro tem until April 22, after the primary election to choose a new District 1 supervisor.
Vice Chair Terra Lawson-Remer will continue as acting chair in the meantime, while Joel Anderson will remain in the pro tem role.
In late December, then-Chair Nora Vargas, District 1 supervisor, announced she would not serve a second term despite handily winning re-election in November. On Jan. 14, supervisors voted unanimously to hold a special election to fill the District 1 seat.
A primary election will take place April 8. If no candidate receives a majority on April 8, a runoff would take place July 1. The election is estimated to cost between $2 million and $6.6 million, according to the county.
On Tuesday, Lawson-Remer nominated herself for board chair, with Monica Montgomery-Steppe as vice chair. Montgomery Steppe seconded the motion.
Their colleague Jim Desmond offered a substitute motion to delay the decision for 90 days, or until after the special election.
Based on county rules, the board otherwise would have had until Feb. 5 to choose leaders.
On Jan. 7, supervisors failed to choose a new leader. At that time, Montgomery Stepped nominated Lawson-Remer as chair, and herself as vice chair. While both women voted yes, Desmond was a no vote and Anderson abstained.
Desmond also nominated himself as chair, but that attempt failed on a tie vote. He and Anderson voted in favor, while Lawson Remer and Montgomery Steppe were opposed.
With the departure of Vargas, a Democrat, the board's current make-up is two Democrats (Lawson-Remer and Montgomery Steppe) and two Republicans (Anderson and Desmond). The Board of Supervisors is a nonpartisan governing body.
Multiple South County officials have either officially put their names forward as District 1 candidates or teased interest — including Imperial Beach Mayor Paloma Aguirre, San Diego City Councilwoman Vivian Moreno, Chula Vista Mayor John McCann and Chula Vista City Councilwoman Carolina Chavez.
