Election special: the key issues and races facing San Diego voters

S1: The issues , key races and measures on your ballot.

S2: This is going to be yet another election that it's going to dramatically change American politics.

S1: I'm Jade Hindman with Maureen CAVANAUGH. This is a KPBS midday edition election special. San Diego County will choose a new sheriff for the first time in 12 years.

S3: It's a little bit tough to say where things are going to shake out. I think , you know , in this race and a lot of local races where turnout and the impact of national politics are going to be a factor.

S1: And we break down local measures to tell you what a yes vote or no vote means. Plus , we dive into the Chula Vista mayor's race and school board races. That's ahead on Midday Edition. Today on Midday Edition , we're bringing you a special program featuring our reporting and analysis of some of the key races voters will be weighing in on in San Diego County. To start us off , President Joe Biden will be in San Diego today to campaign for House Democrats. Right now , there's a tight race in the 49th Congressional District between Democratic Congressman Mike Levin and former San Juan Capistrano mayor Republican Brian Marriott. Joining me to talk about this is that KAZU , professor and co-director at the Yankelovich Center for Social Science Research at UC San Diego and Bade welcome.

S2: Thanks for having me , Ted.

S1: So before we get to the president's visit in San Diego , I want to ask you about the speech he gave last night from Capitol Hill. He called on Americans to use their ballots to stand up against lies , violence. Let's listen to more from the president.

S4: Recent polls have shown an overwhelming majority of Americans believe our democracy is at risk. That democracy is under threat. They to see that democracy is on the ballot this year and they're deeply concerned about it. So today , I appeal to all Americans , regardless of party , to meet this moment of national and generational importance. We must vote knowing what's at stake and not just the policy of the moment that.

S1: What are your takeaways from the speech ? I mean , what could a message from the president like this achieve just five days ahead of the election ? And who could he be reaching that doesn't already have an opinion on this ? Right.

S2: Well , I think a lot of people's opinions on the issues of the day , the policies of the day and which party they ally with are set in stone. And people have figured out where they are by this point in an election and by this point in their lives. The people who Joe Biden is speaking to are the folks , independents and members of that kind of mainstream part of the Republican Party that that often resisted the takeover from from Donald Trump and his split with the Donald Trump wing of the party on this question of whether Joe Biden was legitimately elected president in 2020. Whether the January six attack on Congress was legitimate or not. And I think what he's trying to do is say , hey , to the Republicans who who may disagree with him on a lot of policies , but who agree that he won the election , knowing that there hasn't been any strong evidence produced in any court of law saying that he didn't. And and he saw January six and said that's not where our country wants to go. He's trying to tell them you might not want to vote for Republicans who deny those election results and are proposing changes that would erode democracy in Joe Biden's view. So I think there is some room for him to make inroads among independents and more moderate Republicans on this question of democracy.

S1: Biden will be in San Diego County today campaigning for Mike Levin. What are Democrats hoping the president's visit will accomplish.

S2: In the last week before an election is all about rallying your base. It's not about swinging any undecided voters in in a district like the 49th that has seen so many ads. Right. Everyone is has had enough time to decide whether they like Brian Marriott or Mike Levin. This is Joe Biden trying to to motivate Democrats to get to the polls , to get the young voters , to get the voters who typically sit out midterms , but who helped deliver the presidency to Democrats in November of 2020 to take part in these midterms. He's trying to raise the stakes of this election and hold this ground for for his party in San Diego.

S1:

S2: It's gotten eyeballs and the attention. Right. Mike Levin , who's who's been running a very active campaign throughout this , is the sort of thing that first reminds voters that if they're on his side , that they can't take victory for granted. This is a district that's always been competitive but has been , you know , by the national organizations. It's been moved into into a toss up district. This is this is exactly what he wants. He wants to focus on his district. He wants the voters who might sit out a midterm to realize the stakes. And he wants to get his base rallied. And that's what a president can do for you.

S1: And talk about what happened in the 49th Congressional District that has what political watchers , including the Cook Political Report , to change its outlook for the election from leaning Democrat to a toss up.

S2: I think what happened was that in the 49th District , I think what's happened nationally is , is that over the last month , moving into this election , that this sort of bump and a rebound that Joe Biden and Democrats got from from easing gas prices towards the end of the summer from a major led to. Relative victory on the the act to fight inflation and to make major environmental investments that Joe Biden won in Congress that have given Democrats some momentum. And Republicans , though , as gas prices rose again , Democratic fortunes fell. The continued frustration and fears of inflation and where this country is going in its economy have been a drag on the Democratic ticket nationwide. We've seen that in polls across the country , and that pulled every district a little bit more to the right and that pulled this district back into the toss up realm.

S1: In a poll the Yankelovich Center published this summer , you found fewer Democrats said they were planning to vote in the midterm election than Republicans and independents were really on the fence about voting.

S2: And I think especially what we miss in midterm elections is those voters who aren't fully in one party's camp or who don't typically turn out in midterms. So in the past study , UC San Diego , we found out that of the 4 million Californians who typically turn out in elections in presidential years , but not midterms , they can be effectively mobilized if you reach out to them. And so what I hope the parties are doing is focusing on those independents , trying to get them to the polls , trying to get their young voters to the polls at the same time that they're rallying their bases.

S1:

S2: Republicans are looking to make up ground. I think Democrats , I think keeping the House is out of reach , but potentially keeping the Senate and and setting themselves up for potential victories in 2024. That only happens if turnout is high. If it's something approaching what we saw in 2018 and if it's more reflective of voters of all ages , if Democrats are able to turn out young voters , voters from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in American politics , if those folks come to the polls and Democrats are able to connect with them on the messages , Democrats will be in a better electoral position.

S1: I've been speaking with Thad Couser , a professor and co-director at the Yankelovich Center for Social Science Research at UC San Diego. That , as always , thanks for joining us.

S2: Thanks for having me.

S5: For the first time in more than a decade , San Diego County will have a new sheriff , Bill Gore , who served in the position for 12 years , retired in February. KPBS investigative reporter Claire TRAGESER interviewed the candidates vying to become one of the most powerful law enforcement officials in the county. I spoke to her about how they differ and the key issues in the race. I started by asking about the responsibilities of the San Diego County sheriff. Here's that interview.

S3: The sheriff is one of the few elected officials like law enforcement officials. Most police chiefs are appointed by the mayor , and the sheriff's department provides law enforcement for all unincorporated parts of the county and several of the smaller cities , such as Del Mar and this Imperial Beach Lemon Grove. They also run the seven local jails , which is very important as we'll discuss. And they have almost 5000 employees between jails , courts , a crime lab and all of these patrol stations in the various parts of the county that they police.

S5: Now , right now , the county has an acting sheriff , Anthony Wray , who was appointed by the county Board of Supervisors , but he is not in this race.

S3: But then he ended up retiring early and the county board of Supervisors made it clear that they were not going to appoint anyone to fill in the remainder of his term who was also planning to run. That could have been Kelly Martinez , who was the undersheriff. But they made it clear they didn't want to do that , didn't want someone to get that incumbent advantage. And so Anthony Wray was appointed because he made it clear that he was not going to run for the actual seat.

S5: As you say , a long time County sheriff , Bill Gore retired earlier this year.

S3: He was in office for 12 years. So this is the first time in 12 years where there's no incumbent running.

S5: The two candidates for sheriff , our Kelly Martinez and John Hammerlock. Can you tell us about them starting with Kelly Martinez ? Right.

S3: So she has had a very long career in the sheriff's department. She says she's worked in the sheriff's department since 1985 and she's worked her way up to now being the undersheriff for the San Diego Sheriff's Department. And I asked her actually what that means , because I don't think people really know what that means. She said it's sort of like the CEO , the chief operating officer of a company where she just oversees a lot of the day to day and the coordination among the departments and things like that. One other interesting thing to note is that she , for most of her career , has been registered as a Republican. And then in November 2020 , she changed her registration. And so she's running as a Democrat. And when I spoke to her , I asked her what she wants to do if she's elected. And here's what she says.

S1: I'm the most qualified candidate.

S5: For this position. I know the department. I know our. Communities.

S2: Communities.

S1: It would be.

S2: Really detrimental to the movement , the forward movement of the department if someone else came in and started.

S5: From scratch. And tell us about this second candidate , John Hamelin. Right.

S3: Right. So John Hamelin does not have a career in the sheriff's department , but he does have a career in law enforcement. He started out as a well , he was a marine and then he was a San Diego police officer , and he's previously been the former head criminal prosecutor for the San Diego City Attorney's office. And another interesting thing about him is that he was a registered Republican for most of his life , but then he switched to no party preference , kind of an independent voter in December 2019 and then back to Republican in December 2021. And then he's running now as a Republican. And I asked him what he would want to do if he was elected. And here's what he says.

S2: That I'm the best choice for sheriff to fight crime and restore trust and confidence for safer communities. There's nobody like me. I my my experience and my background is across multiple organizations , chief from a prosecutor , a combat Marine , a leader of Marines , and a former San Diego police officer.

S5: Now , Claire , as you mentioned , the sheriff runs the county jails , which have been the subject of harsh criticism from the state over the number of deaths in our jails. What are the candidates say about that ? Right.

S3: So neither of them have really released like a point by point plan. Here's exactly what I would do. John Hammer , obviously running as the outsider , is more critical of the way things have been going. And he talked more about , you know , providing deputies with resources to provide mental health and medical care and psychiatric care , because he says some of the people who are coming into the jails maybe shouldn't even be there or should be treated beforehand before they even show up. In the jails. And then Kelly Martinez talked about things that she's done as undersheriff changes , that she's made more to do with drug screening , where she says , you know , one of the biggest issues is things like fentanyl getting into the jails. And so having more technology and more screening to our dogs , things like that , to to check people for drugs before they arrive in jail.

S5:

S3: And Dave Myers , who is a retired sheriff's commander , got about 19% of the vote. And so Dave Myers is a Democrat. And so you might think , okay , well , all of the Democrats who voted for Dave Myers are then going to vote for Kelly Martinez. So she should be all set. But a wrinkle in that is that Dave Myers actually endorsed John Hamelin. So it's a little bit tough to say where things are going to shake out. I think , you know , in this race , in a lot of local races where turnout and the impact of of national politics are going to be a factor.

S5: And where can listeners get more information about this race ? Yeah.

S3: So on our website , KPBS dot org , we have a big button for elections and we go into a lot more of the issues in the sheriff's race , including sexual harassment lawsuits that have been filed against the department recently , staff retention and morale , the criminal justice movement. So all of that , you can you can see if you go to KPBS dot org.

S5: I've been speaking with KPBS investigative reporter Claire TRAGESER. Claire , thanks.

S3: Thank you.

S5: This is KPBS midday edition. I'm Maureen CAVANAUGH with Jade Heineman. Voters may be experiencing a sense of deja vu when they read through Measure C on the San Diego City ballot. Voting yes on the measure would allow the construction of new buildings taller than 30 feet in the Midway district. Supporters of the proposed redevelopment of the area say removing the coastal height restriction is crucial for the realization of the plan. And voters have approved the idea before. It just didn't stick. Joining me to explain is KPBS metro reporter Andrew BOE. And , Andrew , welcome.

S2: Hi , Maureen.

S5: So voters approved removing the 30 foot height limit in the Midway District back in 2020.

S2: It's called Measure E at the time , and they argued that the city needed to study the environmental impacts of taller buildings in this area. The city claims that it had already done that analysis when it updated the Midway community plan , which was basically just a big rezoning of this neighborhood to allow for higher density housing. But a judge looked at that already adopted environmental impact report and disagreed and said , you know , there are some issues that you didn't look at this first time around. So that judge blocked the city from implementing the measure , even though it passed with almost 57% of the vote , I believe. So at the time , Mayor Todd Gloria said he was going to pursue two parallel tracks of getting this measure to stick legally. One of them was appeal that unfavorable court decision and try to get overturned at the Court of Appeal. And the other was to do a new environmental impact report , go through this process of saying , okay , how well , what are the visual impacts of looking at , you know , having taller buildings in this area ? The city adopted that second environmental impact report and that essentially cleared the way for this second ballot measure.

S5:

S2: There was a lot of anxiety in San Diego about developments along the coast. You can actually see some of the projects that led to that anxiety. There are a few mid-rise , mid-rise and high rise hotels in La Hoya and Mission Beach that got built before the ballot measure was adopted in 1972. And that was , you know , at the time , really sparking fears that San Diego would turn into Miami Beach with skyscrapers right next to the water. And so some citizens gathered signatures to impose a 30 foot height limit on coastal neighborhoods in this city. And the dividing line was Interstate five , the freeway. So everything west of five was to be subject to this height limit. So that measure passed. And midway , despite not really being a coastal neighborhood , is west of I-5. So , you know , that's how it got grouped into the same category as neighborhoods like , you know , Pacific Beach and Point Loma , where folks do have concerns over , you know , blocking views of the coast and Midway. There aren't any coastal views , but that doesn't really matter because the dividing line was I-5.

S5:

S2: So once you cross the line into Point Loma or once you go north into Mission Bay or Mission Beach , the height limit of 30 feet would still apply.

S5:

S2: There are a lot of industrial properties that are , you know , just not very well maintained. There are a lot of vacant lots , vacant storefronts , big box retail stores , and a lot of that land could very easily be redeveloped into new housing. But this 30 foot height limit makes any projects that a builder would try to build in feasible , which is you can't earn enough money off of that investment that you put into the land when you build something new. So , you know , the supporters of Measure C that say that in order for us to realize this vision of of redeveloping the Midway district and giving it a makeover are building nice places to go to , you have to remove the height limit. Another thing is , you know , if even if a builder were to build , you know , new housing in the Midway district up to 30 feet , it would be a really boxy building. The building would take up the entire footprint of the property because the developer is trying to pack in as much floor space into that areas as possible. If you allow the building to go taller than the building can get more slender , you can , you know , have more open space on the ground. Phones that could be used , you know , for pedestrian amenities or plazas. And so , you know , the main argument is , is we just need to give developers a reason to invest in their land here and build something better for the neighborhood.

S5:

S2: So midway , of course , is pretty congested right now , especially during , you know , rush hour. And the opponents say that's only going to get worse if we clear the way for this redevelopment that the supporters of Measure C are calling for. Midway is , you know , a through point for a lot of neighborhoods that don't really have anywhere else to go if they're trying to get to the five freeway or the rest of San Diego , it's , you know , Point Loma as a peninsula. So there are only so many places that you can go through to get out of it. There's another argument that I'm not hearing quite as often or it's not as front and center , but you do hear it here in there , which is that the slippery slope argument. So if we you know , even though this measure is limited to the Midway district , if we allow , you know , one little chipping away of this coastal height limit , which for so many years has been just a third rail of local politics and totally sacrosanct and untouchable , then you know , what's to stop developers or the city from removing the height limit in other areas of the coast ? So those are the the main arguments that you hear against it.

S5: And hasn't another lawsuit already been filed challenging the removal of the coastal height restriction in the Midway district ? Yeah.

S2: So that same group that sued the city the first time around and got Measure E from 2020 to be suspended has already sued the city again over this new environmental impact report where the city said , sure , there's going to be some visual impacts , you know , with taller buildings. But , you know , we still think that it's worth our while to to allow taller buildings here. So that second lawsuit hasn't really been litigated yet. I you know , I'm not a lawyer , so I can't really speak to what the merits are. But it does provide , you know , just some degree of uncertainty. Even if the city were to get a second. Yes. On this question of raising the height limit.

S5: I've been speaking with KPBS , metro reporter Andrew BOE. And Andrew , thanks.

S2: My pleasure , Maureen.

S5: San Diego , residents in single family homes have been getting a free ride on separate fees for trash pickup for the last 100 years. An item on the November ballot would be the first step toward changing that measure. B would allow the city to study the feasibility of charging trash pickup fees for single family homeowners by repealing the Century Old People's Ordinance Law. And joining me is KPBS reporter Jacob Air. Jacob , welcome.

S6: Thanks for having me on.

S5:

S6: So it prohibits the city from charging single family homes an extra trash pickup fee. Meanwhile , multi-family complexes and businesses have to hire these private waste haulers.

S5: During that 100 years.

S6: In the past , there was actually a grand jury who has already called the system inequitable. So Measure B is really just a furthering upon that already decisive statement by the grand jury.

S5:

S6: And right now , that's costing about 40 to $50 million per year. San Diego City Council President Shawnee La Rivera says those funds in the tens of millions could be used for other things like parks , libraries , firefighters and lifeguards.

S5: So everybody else who doesn't live in a single family home has been paying fees for trash pickup , and they have to pay those fees to private trash haulers.

S6: Whether they've been paying and whether they know it or not. Around 47% of households within the city of San Diego , as well as businesses they've been paying. So if Measure B passed , it would let the city recover the pick up costs from the roughly 53% or so of San Diegans who have been exempt from those pick up fees.

S5: But the supporters say the fees would be studied.

S6: If Measure B passes , it would be at least two years before any fees are charged to these single family. Homeowners of the city would have to do a cost of service study first , which that analyzes specific fees that will be added to these homeowners.

S5:

S6: But at the moment , the city's independent budget analyst estimates customers would pay about 23 to $29 per month after that two year time period. But like I said , the number could change due to an inflation in other things.

S5:

S6: Those are their Big three. They say by repealing the ordinance , everyone would be paying into the system and they would also have additional money for public needs. And the climate action campaigns making have actually said it would help create a greener future in a place where.

S2: You never see your bill for a trash removal. You don't care whether you put recyclable things into your landfill bin or compostable things into your landfill bend.

S5: But opponents say trash fees for single family homeowners would amount to a double charge.

S6: So when I spoke with Hany Hong of the San Diego Taxpayers Association , he says the only way in his mind to make trash pickup equitable is to actually remove those fees for everyone and only charge those who are super wasters. If you want to.

S2: Make this more fair and more equitable , the answer is not charging everybody twice , including the single family homeowners. The answer is charging everybody once.

S5:

S6: And yes , the ballot measure would also guarantee free trash bins for all , which the city does not currently provide. And that's a perk that seemed to be a pretty big deal for a lot of voters who were maybe on the fence.

S5: Now , how can listeners find out more about Measure B and other issues on the November ballot.

S6: So people can go to KPBS org and go out and check out our KPBS Voter Hub , which contains details about a ton of different ballot measures , races and other insights for this upcoming November election season.

S5: I've been speaking with KPBS reporter Jacob Air. Jacob , thanks.

S6: Thank you so much for having me on.

S1: Measure is a cannabis tax measure that would impact cannabis businesses operating in the unincorporated area. I spoke with KPBS reporter Matt Hoffman about the details of the measure. I started by asking how it ended up on the ballot.

S2: So Measure A would basically allow the county to tax cannabis businesses. And we're only talking about in unincorporated areas , although all county voters will see this on their ballot. You know , basically the San Diego County Board of Supervisors , they want to tax these cannabis businesses. They think they can make some money on it. But in order to do that , they have to send this to voters. So that's where we're at here with Measure A , it was placed on the ballot by a majority vote of the Board of Supervisors , and that's where we're at.

S1:

S2: And that money , it's not really , you know , earmarked for anything specific , you know , other than in terms of , you know , supporting this legal cannabis industry here. The revenues go to any government purpose so it can be used for parks , fire safety , really whatever the county would want to spend on it.

S1:

S2:

S1: Who's against the measure and.

S2: Why in terms of those who are against it ? You know , we have the San Diego County Taxpayers Association and interestingly enough , you know , the Republican Party of San Diego County on their voter guide , they say no , while the Democratic Party says yes. And the big argument that we're hearing in terms of why this shouldn't pass from Haney , hang the president of the Taxpayers Association , you know , saying that it's really unfair because this tax only applies to businesses that are in the unincorporated area , those cannabis businesses. But yet all county voters are being asked to weigh in on it. And he also questions , you know , whether revenues from this program like say , it makes $5 million in its first year. Is that money going back to just the unincorporated areas ? Because , you know , it doesn't have to.

S1: Nor is there anything included in this measure to ensure the revenue is distributed in a way that's equitable across the county.

S2: And the argument in support of Measure A that was written by Supervisor Nathan Fletcher , Nora Vargas and Tara Lawson Reamer you know , they say that the county's budget , you know , with these revenues will be protected from any new costs associated with this cannabis regulation. And sort of a broad statement here. But they say it's also can be used to protect resources for investment in communities , public health and social equity programs. Now , the rebuttal for that questions , you know , what exactly does that mean ? But supporters say that the money for this will stay in San Diego County.

S1: And that brings me to my next question.

S2: Jim Desmond was not in favor of that. But issuing the official argument in favor of this was Supervisor Chair Nathan Fletcher , vice Chair Nora Vargas and Supervisor Terrell Austin Reamer. Also , as I mentioned earlier , local Democrats say , yes , do support this. And they say , you know , look , we have a large market here of that. There's still some illegal operations. Funds from this will go to shut that down. They want to keep the money local. They point out that it's not a tax on cannabis users , that it's a tax on the businesses , although , you know , that'll be remain to be seen if that does get passed down to users. But they say that this is the way to go to advance the legal cannabis market in San Diego County.

S1: And this cannabis tax isn't uncommon. Some cities already have it.

S2: So the the unincorporated county , the county is not the first to do this , interestingly enough. And the Union-Tribune , their editorial board endorsements , they say no. They say that this is too early. They sort of point to when the state first legalized cannabis and started taxing it and they didn't get the revenues that they were expecting. And the argument from the editorial board is sort of , you know , the county needs to focus on shutting down all of the illegal operations before they can go out and try to , you know , put a tax on those that are operating legally.

S1:

S2: And while this was going through the county board process , Supervisor Jim Desmond was asking county staff about , you know , why is that ? Why does it have to go to voters county wide if we're just talking about unincorporated county and county staff basically said to him , you know , it's California law and they can't do this any way else. So that's why you're seeing , you know , supporters saying , hey , you know , this is going countywide. But , you know , keep in mind , it's not a double tax. So like those in La mesa , those in city of San Diego. They're not going to be paying their local city tax and then this other county tax. It's just going to be for the unincorporated area.

S1: I've been speaking with KPBS , has Matt Hoffman. Matt , thank you so much for joining us.

S2: Thanks , J.

S1: To find out more about measure and other ballot issues , find the KPBS Voter hub at KPBS dot org. You're listening to a KPBS midday Edition election special. I'm Jade Hindman with Maureen CAVANAUGH. For the first time in eight years , Chula Vista voters will elect a new mayor this November as Mayor Mary Salis is termed out. The two candidates , Councilman John McCann and a MA camp manager , frame the race as a choice between experience and new ideas. KPBS reporter Gustavo Solis has been covering the race and joins us now. Gustavo , welcome.

S6: Hello , Jane.

S1: So first , before we talk about the candidates running for mayor , I want to talk about Chula Vista.

S6: Right. The city's own financial department projects a growing budget deficit , meaning they're going to spend more money than they generate. And this isn't a new problem for Chula Vista. The city is a bedroom community. They've historically struggled to attract businesses to Chula Vista , so its tax base is overly reliant on property taxes and there aren't enough sales and hotel taxes to to offset that future. Mayor and city council should definitely address this issue. Some of the other ones are problems with the city's marijuana ordinance. It took them two years to get it off the ground and they're in legal troubles now. I think at least three lawsuits last time I counted from dispensaries that that that the city didn't even follow its own complicated ordinances. And the judges have cited with some of those lawsuits already. The other big issue that we've covered extensively here at KPBS is criticisms with the city's surveillance technology policies , particularly from civil liberties organizations and private advocacy groups. And that's just at the police department's use of the drone program and license plate reader data. That gives us a feeling that Chula Vista is one of the most surveilled cities in the county. Hmm.

S5: Hmm.

S1:

S6: The mayor of Chula Vista is essentially just another city council member , but with a few added perks , the mayor has more of a say in what items go on the agenda for weekly council meetings. So that influences a little bit what city the city council votes on. The mayor also sits on regional boards like SANDAG , which gives Chula Vista , say , over the entire county , particularly on transportation issues that they're focused on. And despite their campaign promises , the mayor of Chula Vista really has limited power to unilaterally change city policy.

S1: Mm hmm. And so there are two candidates running for mayor. One is John McCann. What can you tell us about his background ? Right.

S6: Right. As you said in the beginning , right. The race is being framed as one of experience versus new ideas. And John McCann would represent the experience. He's been in the city council for six years. He loves reminding people that that he has the experience. He's a veteran who served in Iraq and he's also relatively wealthy. He owns a multi-million dollar property management business and several homes. Like I said , he's the established candidate who essentially wants Chula Vista to stay the way it is. Go in the same direction that it's been going to in the last decade. Now , I'd say if you live in Chula Vista and you're relatively happy with how your government functions , John McCann might be a good option. He is very reluctant to criticize anything the city does , including the police department's use of surveillance , the city's marijuana ordinance and whatever the city council votes on. And that's partly because he's been part of those city councils. Something that differentiates him a little bit from a cabinet DA is he's a conservative who has spoken out against some social issues like drag Queen story , where he's very against he's also against removing the statue of Christopher Columbus from Discovery Park.

S1: Mm hmm. The other candidate , as you mentioned , is a Ma kampong Aja. What do we know about his background ? Amar.

S6: Kevin , Aja really made a name for himself running for Congress twice in this county. And it was a little bit of a shock when he announced a mayoral run for Chula Vista because he had spent the last years portraying himself as a son of East County. He does have more money and more endorsements than John McCann. He seems to be the favorite in the race. A registered Democrat , but also ran as a moderate for Congress. Right. He criticized Nancy Pelosi on some issues and smoke cigars with groups like Defend East County Cabinet. DA wants to change things in Chula Vista , so he would be like the new ideas candidate. He says current government has dropped the ball on issues like the garbage strike that left garbage on people's streets for four weeks and weeks on end in Chula Vista. He's also been very critical of the homeless situation , particularly down in western Chula Vista. So if you are a little bit fed up with the way Chula Vista has been managed over the last decade , camping AJA might be in a. Healing option.

S1: Where do these candidates stand on the issues affecting the city that you mentioned earlier ? Let's start with the city's problem of not enough money coming in.

S6: Both candidates are very , very similar on some of these issues. Right. And this isn't just these two candidates. Basically , every politician who has run for office in Chula Vista over the last five years since I've been covering this city all say that they support public safety. They want to attract new businesses , Chula Vista. They want to finish the Bayfront project and they want to bring a four year university to Chula Vista that everyone across the board says they want all those things in terms of how to address the the long term budget deficit. Amar campaign Aja seems a little bit more focused on it and more aware of it. I think John McCann is a little bit dismissive of it when I've spoken to him. Like I said before , in terms of the marijuana ordinance , I think both candidates will recognize that the city messed up in the beginning. John McCann said that the city should have gone with another contractor to to evaluate some of these applications. And in retrospect , he wouldn't have done it that way. But now he says that the issue is basically solved where his campaign , Aja , says , no , the issues in software are still getting sued because of this and we need to address it going forward. In terms of police oversight , that's where they're kind of night and day with surveillance. John McCann , like I said before , is extremely reluctant to criticize the police department , even with something like the surveillance , the license plate reader program , right where it was proven and shown that Chula Vista was sharing license plate reader data with ICE and Customs and Border Protection for three years without the city's police chief or mayor knowing about it. I've asked John about that several times , and he just kind of dismisses it as well. We're not doing it anymore and the problem is solved. Whereas campaign Aja will say that never should have happened in the first place and we need more police oversight to prevent stuff like that from happening in the future. So that's a little bit of the difference of where they stand on some of those issues.

S1: And it will be something we all keep our eye on for sure. I've been speaking with KPBS reporter Gustavo Solis. Gustavo , thanks for joining us.

S6: Oh , thank you. I really appreciate you having me.

S5: The midterm election will have a significant focus on local school board races , although candidates for those campaigns have usually been listed at the bottom of the ballot. KPBS education reporter MJ Perez tells us the ongoing pandemic continues to fuel high emotions and interest in how school districts are run.

S1: Well , I'll speak quickly.

S2: Because I listen to all.

S1: These folks. Well , I'm sorry. It's not okay.

S7: It came fast and furious from hell is hard.

S2: I stop at the whip.

S7: Those are voices from school board meetings in San Diego County at different times during the COVID pandemic of the past two and a half years , hostility and hatred directed at those elected board members whose job is running school districts and spending taxpayer dollars. This is from a board meeting in May in the San Diego Union High School District.

S6: I wanted the money of the district to be spent wisely.

S2: I'm a lawyer. It's my time. Do you want to spend that ? Shut up. Let me think.

S7: And there's this from a meeting of the Sweetwater Union High School District in 2020.

UU: You won a fight. You won a lot. We're coming , and we're not.

S7: Going to take it. And we're not going to stand for it. Parents and teachers and community members have shown up like never before to blame and berate school board members about everything from mask mandates and vaccination requirements to critical race theory and LGBTQ representation.

S2: We don't start from an established set of facts , then it makes it very difficult to have any conversation beyond that.

S7: Evan Crawford is a political scientist at the University of San Diego. He studies trends in school boards across the country.

S2: Most of the job is what we would probably all still agree is nonpartisan.

S6: We have a certain budget that we have.

S2: Are we going to construct a school here ? Are we going , you know , we got to set the bus routes. We're hiring personnel.

S7: There are more than 13,000 school boards in the U.S. , 1000 of them here in California alone. They are supposed to be nonpartisan , solving very localized problems. But COVID created universal chaos in education , along with deep rooted political lines. Which means your ballot for the November election has candidates with big party support , even if there is no capital R or D next to their name.

S2: For whom is it worth it ? Now , if it's becoming a partisan issue , we have to wonder maybe strong Republicans or Democrats who have these passionate kind of partisan feelings and now see the school board as a partisan body that might be now be attractive to them.

S7: As a hidden giant , and so many opportunities to get people in , to have some say in their local school boards. Shawn Steele is a lifelong Republican. He chairs the California Republican Party and is the state representative on the Republican National Committee. He has been at work recruiting and training candidates for school boards in a program called Parent Revolt. I don't care how much experience they have , if they are.

S2: Parents and.

S6: They love their kids.

S7: And they're reasonable , I would support them in that , including non-Republicans.

S2: I would tell students in San Diego and across the country that your voice matters. You can make a difference.

S7: Shivraj Bhandari is on the other side of the aisle and a couple of states away. He is 18 years old , a high school senior , and in September he was elected to the Boise , Idaho School Board , defeating an established incumbent candidate who accepted the endorsement of a local far right paramilitary group known as the Idaho Liberty Dogs.

S2: The only way is to crack down and say no enough that extremism has no place here. Everyone is welcome to participate in decision making regarding our schools , but hate and violence have no place in Boise and anywhere else in the country.

S7: Shiva's historic election is one solution to the unfolding political problem that is gripping school boards everywhere. It also provides a teachable moment. Yes.

S1: Yes.

S7: We can say we will not apply. That lesson will not go quietly. M.G. Perrette , KPBS News.