RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY
East County News Service November 9, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) – A red flag warning is in effect for Wednesday and Thursday for portions of the San Diego County Valleys for gusty east winds and low humidity from 10 a.m. Wednesday to 4 p.m. Thursday. Moderate to locally strong Santa Ana winds and low humidities will creat critical fire weather conditions. Any fires that develop will likely spread rapidly. Outdoor burning is not recommended. Monitor winds/gusts/temperature/relative humidity from a weather station near you: http://weather.sdgeweather.com/
SDSU’S GEORGIA LACEY NAMED MOUNTAIN WEST WOMEN’S GOLFER OF THE MONTH
Aztec junior collects first career MW weekly/monthly honor Source: goaztecs.com press release Photo courtesy goaztecs.com November 9, 2016 (Colorado Springs) – San Diego State’s Georgia Lacey (Del Mar, Calif.) was named Mountain West Women’s Golfer of the Month for October, the league office announced Wednesday. With her award, the Aztec junior garnered the first conference weekly/monthly accolade of her career. Lacey was SDSU’s top golfer in two tournaments last month, recording a team-best 70.00 scoring average in four rounds to go with a pair of top-15 placements. Lacey made a huge splash at the highly competitive Stanford Invitational hosted by Condoleezza Rice, Oct. 14-15, posting her highest finish in an Aztec uniform with a tie for second place against a field that featured eight top-25 squads. The Torrey Pines High alumna shot a 36-hole total of 2-under-par 140, topping 29 individuals ranked in the Golfstat top 100, including four players in the top 10. Lacey, who led the prestigious event in par-4 scoring (3.83), shot a career-low 4-under 67 in round one, highlighted by a team-best six birdies to go with an eagle-3 on the par-5, 495-yard No. 1 hole. Later at the Las Vegas Collegiate Showdown, Lacey helped San Diego State tie for fourth place in the team standings after completing her seventh career top 20 with a 15th-place showing at 4-under 140 on back-to-back rounds of 70. She sank eight birdies for the week, including an impressive drain on the par-4, 398-yard No. 9 in the final round, which ranked as the toughest hole of the tournament. For the season, Lacey owns a 71.71 scoring average and finds herself at No. 53 in the latest Golfweek/Sagarin individual rankings. She also occupies the 59th position in the most recent Golfstat Cup standings. Lacey and the 30th-ranked Aztecs will have the next three months off from competition before opening their 2017 spring schedule at the Northrup Grumman Regional Challenge, Feb. 12-14, in Palos Verdes Estates, Calif.
DEMOCRATS WIN SEAT ON LA MESA CITY COUNCIL
Medical pot measure also passes By Miriam Raftery November 9, 2016 (La Mesa)—Attorney and affordable housing advocate Colin Parent, a Democrat, has won election to the La Mesa City Council, narrowly defeating incumbent Ruth Sterling, a Republican. Councilwoman Kristine Alessio, an attorney, won reelection. Parent will be the lone Democrat on the five-member Council. Sterling has long been one of La Mesa’s most popular politicians, winning past reelections by wide margins. But she missed a key La Mesa debate this election cycle due to falling and breaking her arm. Sterling had initially announced she would not seek reelection, but later changed her mind after constituents urged her to run. With 100% of precincts counted but late mail-in ballots and provisionals remaining to be tallied, Alessio has 35.55% of the vote (6675 votes), Parent has 35.35% (6450 votes) and Sterling 30.11% (5654 votes). Colin has served in Governor Jerry Brown’s administration working on affordable housing issues. He is currently an attorney for Circulate San Diego, a group advocating for transit-friendly communities. Councilman Bill Baber states,”I am looking forward to working with Colin Parent on our City Council. The voters know Kristine is doing a great job. She deserved four more years. La Mesa is lucky to have her on the Council.” La Mesa residents also narrowly approved Measure U, an initiative to legalize and regulate medical marijuana dispensaries, by approximately a 51.4% to 48.6% margin.
KAREN CLARK-MEJIA AND JIM MILLER ELECTED TO CAJON VALLEY UNION SCHOOL BOARD
Bond measure narrowly losing By Jonathan Goetz November 9, 2016 (El Cajon) -Conservative Republicans have won election in the five-person race for Cajon Valley Union School Board. Both are endorsed by the Republican Party though the race is nonpartisan. Clark-Mejia serves as the lead marriage and family therapist intern at New Day Women’s Center and Counseling Services, a 501(c)3 nonprofit that serves women and their families. Miller, an attorney, businessman and parent, scores a win with his election to school board after previously losing a race for Superior Court Judge mired in controversy over his removal as a superior court judge. He opposes the Common Core curriculum and was endorsed for school board by State Senator Joel Anderson, who said, “We can trust Jim will put kids first in every decision. I am proud to have supported him for Cajon Valley Union School District.” Results with 100% of precincts counted are: KAREN CLARK-MEJIA 12719 30.50% JIM MILLER 12042 28.88% MICHAEL L. GEORGE 8983 21.54% RAMONA IRWIN 4588 11.00% DEVORAH ANN FOX 3369 8.08% The school bond initiative,Measure EE, appears to have narrowly missed the 55% needed for passage. With 100% of precincts counted but late mail-in and provisionals remaining, the measure has 54.9% yes, 45.1% no,out of nearly 30,000 votes cast.
OUTSIDERS WIN SEATS ON GROSSMONT UNION HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARD
School bond measure also passes By Miriam Raftery November 9, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) –The Grossmont Union High School District has been rife with controversies including efforts to parents to split the district apart after the board ignored admonishments by the County Grand Jury and refused to build an Alpine High School promised in two past bond measures—voting to instead fund a lawsuit defending the district’s stance. Yesterday, voters cast out incumbent Jim Stieringer, the newest Board member in a wave of anti-incumbency that swept the nation on a day that saw Donald Trump capture the presidency. His replacement in trustee district 2, the La Mesa-Mt. Helix area, is a teacher. Voters also elected a teacher in district 1 in Lemon Grove-Spring Valley-La Prensa, carved out through redistricting as a majority-minority district. Here’s what the public can learn from these races. Stieringer was in a lose-lose position; after he voted to oppose continuing legislation, the Republican Party endorsed Bible teacher Kevin Conover, hoping to continue its domination of the board. But with 100% of the precincts counted, the winner in District 2 is Elva Salinas, a community college teacher whose endorsement by the American Federation of Teachers likely swayed voters to put her in first with 33.57% of the vote. Stieringer is second, with 28.16% of the vote—losing by a mere180 votes, if that total holds when every last ballot including late-arriving mail-ins are counted. Conover fiinished third with 26.9% of the vote and Oday Yousif Jr., a university student endorsed by the Democratic Party, finished fourth with 10.37%. Salinas is also a Democrat but was not endorsed by the party. In District 1, an open seat due to the new trustee district created through redistricting, the winner was also a teacher and a Democrat, Chris Fite, with 31.15% of the vote. Fite ran a stealth campaign, with no website and but the muscle of the party’s official endorsement apparently enough to beat out three other challengers. Steve Babbitt, a member of the La Mesa Spring Valley School District board, took 26.48% of the vote, followed by Richard Preciado with 22.74% and preacher Rolland Slade with 19.64%. A byproduct of redistricting in the GUHSD may be a break-up of the power long held by both the Republican Party and mega-churches, though three incumbents long backed by persuasive religious leaders and mega-church parishioners in more heavily Republican-leaning districts will not face reelection until 2018.The votes also respect a power struggle between the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and the Grossmont Education Association (GEA), the local teachers’ union which did not endorse any candidates in the race. Voters could have a chance to break-up that majority sooner, however, if the state and voters approve a request by Alpine parents and the Alpine Union School District to break off from the GUHSD and unify the AUSD to expand from elementary and middle school to high school. A suit seeking to take back funds raised by Propositions H and U to build that school remains in court. If the split is approved, sources have advised ECM that trustee Jim Kelley, who lives in the area slated to be dropped from the GUHSD, would ultimately lose his seat if he stays there. Grossmont’s Bond Measure BB, meanwhile, appears to have narrowly won approval from voters yesterday by just under 58%, with 55% needed for passage. Voters made clear that they want to keep seeing improvements to the district’s schools—while voting to infuse the GUHSD board with new faces they hope are not controlled by the same forces that have long dominated the school board.
CLOSE COUNCIL RACE IN EL CAJON; VOTERS APPROVE REDISTRICTING
By Miriam Raftery November 9, 2016 (El Cajon) – With 43.6% of precincts counted, a 10-candidate race for El Cajon City Council is still too close to call. There are three seats up—and currently, two challengers have edged ahead of incumbent Star Bales. However voters handily approved Measure S, the redistricting proposal to establish district elections. Measure S has nearly 69% of the vote with 43.6% of precincts counted. Councilman Bob McClellan is on top with 14.87% (3,000 votes). In second place with 13.29% (2682 votes) is Ben Kalasho, a Democrat and president of the Chaldean-American Chamber of Commerce. If he wins, he will be the first Democrat in recent memory to serve on the all-Republican Council. In third place is Steve Goble, senior vice president at Postal Annex and a long-time community volunteer. Councilwoman Bales, who is also Chaldean, is in fourth place, with 11.64% of the vote, followed by Stephanie Harper with 9,5%, Paul Circo at 9.11%, Vickie Butcher 9.0%, Humbert Cabrera 7.56%, George Glover 6.12%, and Joseph Fountain 6%. A win for Kalasho and Goble could mean an end to the control long exerted by the Lincoln Club, a conservative business PAC that endorsed and heavily promoted McClellan, Bales and Circo,though it appears two of those candidates may lose by narrow margins. The Republican Party also backed these three candidates. The race’s outcome may bolster future efforts by Democrats, following Kalasho’s likely win and respectable showings by Harper and Butcher, the other party-backed candidates. The city is now a majority of ethnic and racial minorities with registration trending Democratic.
MINTO AND HOULAHAN WINNING IN SANTEE
By Miriam Raftery Photo,left: Stephen Houlahan November 9, 2016 (Santee) – With 36% of precincts counted, Councilman John Minto,a retired police officer, is maintaining a 10 point lead over felow Councilman and realtor Rob McNellis in the race to become Santee’s next Mayor. Current Mayor Randy Voepel tonight won election handily to the State Assembly over Leo Hamel. Though Santee’s Council has long been heavily influenced by developers and real estate interests, Stephen Houlahan, running on an environmental platform, appears likely to defeat two pro-development opponents. Houlahan currently had 39% of the vote. Mason Herron, Assemblyman Brian Jones’ aide who attracted hefty contributions from developers and out-of-town donors, has 31%, while Dustin Trotter, a contractor, has 30%. Houlahan led the successful campaign to stop the Quail Brush gas power plant near Mission Trails Regional Park and has pledged to end traffic gridlock in Santee. He was backed by Preserve Wild Santee, which has fought to protect open spaces and oppose sprawling development in the community. If elected he will fill a vacancy left by the retirement of Councilman Jack Dale.
INCUMBENTS OUSTED ON HELIX WATER BOARD
By Miriam Raftery November 8, 2016 (La Mesa)—It’s rare for incumbents to be unseated. But Chuck Muse and John Linden, two incumbents who voted for repeated rate increases including an unprecedented five-year rate hike, appear to have lost their reelection bids. The apparent wins for Mark Gracyk and Dan McMillan are also victories for the local Democratic party, which endorsed both over the Republican incumbents, though the race is officially nonpartisan. It’s also a win for ratepayers ired over repeated hefty rate hikes by incuments who promised fiscal conservatism. In division 1, with 43% of precincts counted, McMillan has 37% of the vote. Lu Tejeda has 31%, while Linden has 27.6% and Aaron Zajac trails with 4.3% In division 2, Gracyk holds a commanding lead at 57.6% over Eric Collins at 22%; incumbent Muse is last with just under 21% after 39.4% of precincts have been counted. A third seat was won unanimously by Joel Scalzitti, running unopposed. Scalzitti and incumbent Kathleen Coates-Hedberg have also opposed rate hikes, though incumbent DeAna Verbeke has supported them. If tonight’s election results hold, there will now be a 4-1 majority on the board in favor of giving ratepayers a break. The challengers ran on a platform of promising to halt rate hikes and if possible, roll back rates. That could prove easier said than done, since the district has substantial infrastructure to maintain. For the newly elected board members riding a wave of ratepayer discontent, the real challenge may have only just begun.
TRUMP WINS WHITE HOUSE; STOCK MARKET PLUMMETS 827 POINTS
Update: CNN just declared Trump the victor. By Miriam Raftery November 8, 2016 (San Diego)–In a stunning defeat for Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party, business mogul/reality TV star Donald Trump is winning key battleground states and appears likely to capture the presidency. While there is celebration in key Republican circles, the stock market is reeling, with the Dow Jones dropping 827 points at the news. Major networks have declared Trump the winner in Ohio, Iowa, Florida and Pennsylvania. As of 10:30 p.m., CNN projects Trump has 265 electoral votes and Clinton 215; 270 are needed to win. Of six states not yet called, Clinton leads only in Minnesota, New Hampshire and Maine—not enough to win unless Trump’s lead erodes in all of the remaining undecided states: Arizona, Michigan, and Wisconsin, or unless the network’s call proves wrong after all votes are counted, an unlikely scenario. Republicans appear to have kept control of the Senate, likely by a 52-48 margin. One small consolation to Democrats in a night of heavy defeats: Republicans did not gain enough to block a filibuster, giving Democrats one tool to block a Trump-GOP legislative agenda or potentially, Supreme Court or cabinet appointments. Republicansalso maintained solid control of the House. With a vacancy on the Supreme Court that currently has four liberals and four conservatives, the next president will also be responsible for naming at least one and likely more Supreme Court Justices, who serve for life. Thus the Republican Party now has control of all three branches of government. Outside of a filibuster, there is little that Democrats can do to prevent sweeping changes in legislation and appointments to everything from cabinet positions to the Supreme Court. Trump, if he wins the election, would also wield power through executive orders. The news came as crushing disappointment to local Democratic leaders. “I worked so hard to get the first woman president elected,” said Bonnie Price of the East County Democratic Club at the group’s election night gathering at Jimmy’s Restaurant in Santee. Stunned Democrats voiced sadness and disbelief as the election returns rolled in, many denouncing “bigotry” and voicing “shame” over America choosing a leader who has spent much of his campaign villifying immigrants and mocking all with whom he disagrees. On social media, some faulted the Democratic National Committee for early on backing Clinton early on over Senator Bernie Sanders, a democratic socialist who drew large crowds and stunned pundits. Others raised questions over possible hacking in Ohio and voter suppression tactics in other states. Clinton’s campaign has indicated she will not yet concede, though a path to victory appears all but impossible. Despite Trump’s racially charged rhetoric and denigration of women and others, it appears his economic message resonated with many Americans. But most of all, voters sent a message that’s rocked the foundation of both parties—demonstrating support for a political outsider who, like Sanders in decrying income disparaity, appealed to marginalized workers in rust belt states and elsewhere who hope Trump will make good on his promises to bring jobs back to America and restore prosperity. Wall Street analysts seem far less confident, however, with many predicting steeper declines in the stock market for some time, until the full impact of a Trump presidency can be assessed.
SDSU LACROSSE NAMES TEAM CAPTAINS FOR 2017 SEASON
Seniors Deitz, Hickey, Reeves set to lead Aztecs next spring Source: goaztecs.com press release Photo: Katrina Reeves was one of three Aztecs to be selected captain for the 2017 season. Courtesy goaztecs.com November 8, 2016 (San Diego) – San Diego State lacrosse seniors Kayla Deitz, Kristen Hickey and Katrina Reeves have been named team captains for the upcoming 2017 season as announced Tuesday by sixth-year head coach Kylee White. “We are very proud of Kayla, Kristen and Katrina for being selected this year’s captains by their teammates,” White said. “Their love for this program has been apparent since they first set foot on campus. They have demonstrated that they can lead both on and off the field and are great examples of what it means to be an Aztec lacrosse player.” “The entire senior class is invested and capable of impacting this year’s team, and we are extremely excited for this season to start.” A native of Dedham, Mass., Hickey enjoyed her finest collegiate season last spring, finishing second on the team with 19 goals, 26 ground balls and 17 turnovers caused. The SDSU midfielder scored multiple goals in five games a year ago and caused four turnovers on three different occasions. Hickey’s best offensive game of the 2016 campaign occurred in the regular-season finale against No. 12/8 Stanford when she notched five goals to go along with four ground balls and two draw controls. For her career, Hickey has amassed 25 goals, 29 ground balls, 24 draw controls and 23 caused turnovers. A two-time Mountain Pacific Sports Federation all-academic selection, Reeves has seen action in 47 games at goalkeeper over the past three seasons, posting a 15-20 record to go along with a 12.17 goals against average and a .382 save percentage. The Granite Bay, Calif., product recorded a career-high eight wins as a sophomore in 2015, finishing fourth in the MPSF with 6.65 saves per contest to help the Aztecs reach the conference tournament for the second year in a row. In addition, Reeves was earned a spot on the Spanish national women’s squad, garnering all-European Team accolades following the 2015 ELF Women’s Lacrosse European Championship. Deitz, meanwhile, has played in 21 games since her arrival on Montezuma Mesa three years ago from Simsbury, Conn., compiling 12 points on nine goals and three assists to go with seven draw controls. Last season, the Aztec attacker appeared in a career-high 10 games, starting the first three contests of the year. As a sophomore in 2015, Deitz played in seven contests, posting a personal-best five goals, including four in a three-game stretch vs. Cal, Saint Mary’s and Brown. Along with Deitz, Hickey and Reeves, San Diego State returns 18 additional veterans who will join a talented recruiting class consisting of two high school All-Americans and a pair of all-state performers, nine all-conference selections, three all-section/district honorees, one all-county pick and one player of the year award recipient.