County’s judicial race still very close
Wendy Alexander/The Madera Tribune
Voter Center representatives Kathie Rossi, left, Katarina Vandenack, seated, and Sal Hernandez assist voters Keysha Isler and Sarah Machado, right, at the John W. Wells Youth Center on election day.
The race for Superior Court judge after Tuesday’s primary election remains a squeaker.
Just 229 votes separated the two candidates in a list of results Thursday, with Brian Austin leading Carol Moses by less than a percentage point.
Counting of mail-in votes and provisional ballots could change the results.
Whoever wins will not have to run again in November.
Austin is a Madera attorney, while Moses, who lives in the Oakhurst area, is an attorney with offices in Fresno.
Moses ran with much support from the local judiciary and bar. For example, Judge Charles Wieland, whose upcoming retirement will create the position Austin and Moses are seeking to fill, was a strong supporter of Moses. But it was her first time to seek a judgeship, while Austin has run before. District attorney
Sally Moreno and Paul Hornick will face each other in the fall general election as they compete for the seat of District Attorney David Linn, who finished third in the contest for Madera County district attorney.
Moreno, who works for the Fresno County District Attorney’s office, received 7,449 votes, or 44.34 percent.
Hornick, who works for Linn, received 5,592 votes, or 33.29 percent. State Senate
Republican Rob Poythress of Madera will face Democrat Anna Caballero in the fall election for the 12th District State Senate seat.
Poythress, a Republican and former mayor of Madera and now a county supervisor representing District 3, is a banker and partner with his brother in a farm and agricultural supply business. He received 16,277 votes district wide, and 4,041 votes in Madera County.
Caballero, a Democrat of Salinas, is an attorney and former member of the State Assembly. She received 25,071 votes district-wide, and 2,645 in Madera County.
Also running for the Senate was Fresno County dairyman Johnny Tacherra, a Republican who received 2,847 votes. California Assembly
Republican Assemblyman Frank Bigelow of O’Neal’s handily retained his seat with 12,010 votes, compared to Democrat Carla J. Neal’s 5,515. Congress, 16th District
Democratic Congressman Jim Costa retained his seat in the 16th Congressional District by garnering 24,139 votes district-wide against Republican opponent Elizabeth Heng, who received 21,491.
Madera County gave Costa 4,010 votes and Heng 6,403. County offices
County Supervisor, District 1, Brett Frazier, 2,837 votes.
County Supervisor, District 2, David Rogers, 1,984 votes; Al Galvez, 1,023 votes.
Tom Wheeler, District 5 County Supervisor, and challenger Marc Sobel will face off in the general election. Wheeler received 3,666 votes (48.66 percent) to Sobel’s 3,308 (43.91 percent). Candidate H. Nokomis Hernandez received 257 votes. Other offices
These county offices were filled by incumbents who ran unchallenged:
Superintendent of Schools, Cecelia Massetti, 14,542.
Assessor, Gary L. Svanda, 14,439 votes.
Auditor-Controller, Todd E. Miller, 14, 262 votes.
Clerk-Recorder, Rebecca Martinez, 14,780 votes.
Sheriff-Coroner, Jay Varney, 14,892 votes.
Tax Collector-Treasurer, Tracy Kennedy, 14,359.
Further returns, statewide and local, may be found on the California Secretary of State’s website, vote.sos.ca.gov/returns.
Keep in mind the totals are likely to change, if only slightly, once the final canvas of votes is finished.
