Early returns show Berkeley Mayor Jesse Arreguín leading AC Transit board Director Jovanka Beckles in the race for a coveted East Bay state Senate seat.
Arreguín was ahead of Beckles by a wide margin in the first round of results released shortly after polls closed, which the Associated Press estimated reflects 26% of votes for the Senate district that covers Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond and other cities.
The contest between two Democrats in the deep-blue East Bay district displayed divisions among those on the left over issues such as housing and public safety.
Arreguín ran with the backing of much of the region’s establishment Democrats, including Gov. Gavin Newsom and outgoing Sen. Nancy Skinner, who is giving up the seat because of term limits. Beckles, meanwhile, who is supported by the Richmond Progressive Alliance, racked up endorsements from officials and groups further left, such as Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and the East Bay Democratic Socialists of America.
Election officials have said they expect to release an initial round of results shortly after polls close Tuesday night. But if the race is close, we won’t know the winner for several days or perhaps even weeks as ballots are counted.
State Senate District 7 covers cities along the Interstate 80 corridor, from Oakland north to the Carquinez Bridge.
Arreguín’s campaign outspent Beckles’ more than 5-to-1 as of the close of the last campaign finance reporting period on Oct. 19. He drew on support from a range of donors, including a number of major corporations and business lobbying groups.
That prompted criticism from Beckles, a self-described “corporate-free” candidate who contends she, not Arreguín, will champion the district’s progressive values in the Legislature. Arreguín has brushed off that criticism, and argued he would be more effective than Beckles at advancing legislation and advocating for the district in Sacramento.
Beckles and Arreguín advanced to the November election from an expensive and crowded primary campaign earlier this year. Arreguín finished first among the six candidates in that race, with 32% of the vote, while Beckles beat out several better-funded contenders to earn second place with 18%.
