3 candidates take early lead in 3rd District race
Hertzberg, Horvath and Stern well ahead of others in contest to succeed Sheila Kuehl.
In the race to replace Sheila Kuehl on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, early returns Tuesday night showed three candidates in the lead.
State Sen. Bob Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys), West Hollywood City Councilmember Lindsey Horvath and state Sen. Henry Stern (D-Malibu) were significantly ahead of the rest of the field for the 3rd District seat, which covers much of the San Fernando Valley and the Westside.
Unless a candidate gets more than 50% of the vote, the top two finishers will move to a November runoff.
In the 1st District, which includes much of East Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Valley, incumbent Hilda Solis had a large lead over four challengers, the early returns showed.
The three other 3rd District candidates are smallbusiness owner Jeffi Girgenti, canine recreational provider Craig Brill and business owner and actress Roxanne Beckford Hoge.
The county supervisors are sometimes referred to as the “five little kings” because of their unglamorous but powerful jobs controlling an annual budget of nearly $39 billion in a county of more than 10 million people.
The lines for their districts were redrawn by a citizens committee last year, with some conservativeleaning parts of the San Fernando Valley joining the 3rd District.
Homelessness and crime, as well as the high cost of living, have been among the defining issues in the 3rd District race, which became competitive after Kuehl announced she would not seek a third term.
Hertzberg has called for a massive bond measure to help people buy homes, while Horvath has emphasized setting aside a percentage of new housing units for low- and middle-income families.
Stern and Horvath have called for the closure of the Aliso Canyon gas facility, which was the site of a massive leak in 2015, while Hertzberg has not taken a stance on the issue.
The election has been marked by the candidates’ contrasting backgrounds and personalities, as well as their generational and geographic differences.
Hertzberg, 67, served in the state Assembly from 1996 to 2002 and then was elected to the state Senate in 2014, representing an east San Fernando Valley district. In debates and forums, he has emphasized his experience.
In Sacramento, Hertzberg was nicknamed “Huggy Bear” for his love of embraces that made some women uncomfortable. In 2018, three lawmakers accused him of initiating unwanted hugs, and he was reprimanded by the state Senate Rules Committee.
Stern, 40, was the first millennial elected to the state Senate in 2016, representing Thousand Oaks, Calabasas, Simi Valley and western parts of the San Fernando Valley.
He has said that as a relatively young politician, he will bring new ways of thinking to the Board of Supervisors.
Horvath, 39, was elected to the West Hollywood City Council in 2015 after serving as an appointed council member between 2009 and 2011.
She has said that her experience in local government makes her better equipped to be a county supervisor than her opponents.
The latest campaign filings show that Hertzberg has raised more than $1.1 million, Stern has raised $900,000 and Horvath has raised $800,000.
As of May 21, a separate political action committee for Horvath had raised $130,000.
Two committees for Hertzberg combined have raised about $1.4 million, mostly coming from law enforcement and construction unions, while a Service Employees International Union committee supporting Stern raised about $58,000.