Contested San Diego County Supervisor Race may Impact Board Balance

SAN DIEGO—In what looks to be the most hotly contested of Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors races, District 3’s one-term incumbent, Terra Lawson-Remer, faces former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer—with the board’s left versus right alignment potentially at stake.

Though supervisor seats are nonpartisan, Lawson-Remer, the board vice chair, is a Democrat, and Faulconer a Republican.

Currently, the board’s makeup is three Democrats (Lawson-Remer, Nora Vargas, and Monica Montgomery Steppe) and two Republicans (Joel Anderson and Jim Desmond). Vargas (District 1) and Anderson (District 2) are also up for reelection.

If the District 1 and 2 incumbents hold serve on election night, the District 3 battle between Lawson-Remer and Faulconer could prove the difference-maker in shaping future board policy.

As highlighted in a September debate, the homeless crisis is the biggest issue of contention between the two candidates.

Lawson-Remer—an economist, attorney, former senior adviser in the Obama administration, and a self-described “grassroots organizer” who lives in the coastal city of Encinitas—espouses “tackling the homeless crisis with innovative thinking to clean-up streets, clear encampments, and get people the help they need and into supportive housing.”

On her website, she touts “implementing the County’s CARE Court to require people with mental health problems to receive treatment” in addition to “launching a new homeless diversion services program—to keep people housed and save taxpayer money by providing families, seniors and people with disabilities with emergency financial assistance to pay rent and stay housed” and “combating the illegal opioid crisis by increasing fentanyl enforcement, prevention, and addiction treatment programs.”

But Faulconer counters that “it’s clear our current supervisor has failed us.”

“Look no further for evidence of this than the growing health and public safety crisis of homelessness,” he says on his website. “It’s time for a leader who will confront this issue head-on, with compassion and practical solutions, as I have done many times before.”

“I understand that we can’t afford to ignore the struggles of our fellow residents any longer,” Faulconer adds. “Together, we can create a brighter future by providing housing, expanding support services, and constantly searching for new opportunities to help those in need.”

Faulconer also cites his record as San Diego’s mayor from 2014 through 2020 as evidence of why voters should send him to the Board of Supervisors.

“I couldn’t have been more proud to bring common sense and innovative governance to the city,” he says. “Together, we were able to bring real positive change by addressing the crucial issues of homelessness, public safety, and fiscal responsibility.

“Sadly, though, I see our County Board of Supervisors is still refusing to adopt the lessons of the City of San Diego’s successes and instead continues to let down San Diegans with constant inaction.”

For her part, Lawson-Remer argues she has been an agent of change, saying on her website that “decades of inaction on our County Board inspired (her) … to bring her track record and expertise to elected office and shake up the legacy of failed leadership in our region.”

Lawson-Remer says that among her other areas of focus will be the environment, gun safety, reproductive freedom, the cost of housing, and the “climate crisis.”

She would make it a priority, she says “to upgrade the County’s stormwater infrastructure to protect the local water supply and prevent pollution and toxic runoff from contaminating our beaches, bays, and coastlines.” And, she says, she has been a leader in “the fight to clean up the Tijuana River sewage crisis and is demanding state and federal government take action to protect public health and clean-up local beaches.”

A native San Diegan, Lawson-Remer earned an ethics, politics, and economics degree from Yale University, followed by a law degree and doctorate of philosophy from New York University.

She worked for the World Bank before joining the Obama administration as an adviser. She defeated incumbent Kristin Gaspar in 2020.

Faulconer, originally from Oxnard, Calif., earned a political science degree from San Diego State University and, before becoming San Diego mayor in a special election, served on the City Council from 2006 through 2013.

Lawson-Remer has been endorsed by labor groups including the Southwest Carpenters, the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 135, and the Service Employees International Union Local 221; environmental groups including the Sierra Club and Climate Defenders; and organizations such as the Planned Parenthood Action Fund of the Pacific Southwest and San Diego Education Association.

Faulconer’s endorsements include the Lincoln Club Business League; business groups such as the Building Industry of San Diego, California Restaurant Association, and Associated Builders and Contractors of San Diego; and law enforcement groups such as the San Diego Deputy District Attorneys Association, San Diego Police Officers Association, and Carlsbad Police Officers Association.

The mostly coastal District 3 stretches from the city of Carlsbad through the Silver Strand and is comprised of four municipalities—Coronado, Del Mar, Encinitas, and Solana Beach.

District 3 also features the San Diego city neighborhoods Carmel Valley, Little Italy, Midway, Mira Mesa, Mission Beach, Ocean Beach, Pacific Highlands, Pacific Beach, Point Loma, Rancho Penasquitos, Sorrento Valley, Torrey Highlands, and University City. Unincorporated communities Harmony Grove and Rancho Santa Fe are also part of the district.

According to a 2022 county Live Well San Diego demographic profile, District 3 is home to 645,449 residents.