Blackburn, Acosta leading for council
Keith Blackburn and Teresa Acosta have won the two open Carlsbad City Council seats, according to unofficial results released Tuesday by the county registrar of voters.
Blackburn, a retired Carlsbad police officer, has been on the council since 2008. Acosta, a businesswoman and former community college professor, will serve her first term.
Both candidates would be the first people to represent their respective council districts, which were created in 2017 when the City Council voted to switch to the district system. Districts 1 and 3 held their first elections in 2018, and Districts 2 and 4 chose their first council members in Tuesday’s election.
Blackburn’s District 2 opponent was Lela Panagides, a small-business owner and community volunteer. In District 4, Acosta went up against Phil Urbina, a business owner, community volunteer and the 2015 Carlsbad citizen of the year.
Also on the ballot in Carlsbad is Measure G, which had strong support in the early results. It would limit future adjustments to City Council compensation to no more than the San Diego Regional Consumer Price Index. The measure also would require the council to accept or waive any compensation adjustments each January, and would prohibit retroactive adjustments.
Carlsbad Unified School District, which also recently switched to a district voting system, has two open seats on its board of trustees.
In Trustee Area 2, in the north portion of the district, incumbent Trustee Elisa Williamson held a strong lead over challenger Frank Deming. In Trustee Area 3, in the centralwest area of the district, incumbent Ray Pearson was ahead of candidate Rhonda Guaderrama.
Deming has worked in executive strategic consulting and digital transformation, and has lived in the district for two years. Williamson is a 30-year Carlsbad resident who has served on the board since 2000. Guaderrama is director of development for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Oceanside, and has worked with Boys & Girls Clubs in San Diego and Riverside counties for more than 13 years. Pearson is a telecommunications professional and vice president of content for Jewelry Television.