A DASH FOR CASH IN SUPERVISOR RACE

Goldberg top fundraiser; labor PAC spending big for Montgomery Steppe

Janessa Goldbeck leads her three opponents in fundraising in the whirlwind special election race for District 4 county supervisor, but so far, the biggest cash haul has been by a political action committee supporting her fellow Democrat

Monica Montgomery Steppe.

Goldbeck reported about $225,000 in contributions as of July 1, Montgomery Steppe $125,000 and Republican Amy Reichert $72,000.

A separate political action committee reported more than half a million dollars from labor organizations for Montgomery Steppe, while a PAC on behalf of Goldbeck drew more than $70,000 in support of her campaign. PACS can raise and spend money on behalf of a candidate but cannot coordinate with their campaign.

The fourth candidate, Paul Mcquigg,

did not meet the $2,000 threshold for reporting and said he was collecting donations only from friends and families.

The seat representing the heavily Democratic and ethnically diverse district has been vacant since Nathan Fletcher resigned in May following a lawsuit accusing him of sexual assault and harassment. The district includes about 675,000 residents in the cities of Lemon Grove and La Mesa and numerous communities in central San Diego, including City Heights, Kearny Mesa, Clairemont and neighborhoods near Balboa Park.

The board had the option to appoint a replacement or hold a special election and decided unanimously on the latter. That will take place Aug. 15, with a runoff between the top two vote-getters in November if no candidate wins a majority.

The compressed election timeline — with just over two months between the deadline for contenders to declare their candidacy and Election Day — has created a crunch for candidates to connect with voters, and to drum up campaign dona

tions to fund those efforts.

At stake is not only the District 4 seat but control of the five-member Board of Supervisors, which is now evenly split between Democrats and Republicans with one vacancy. The special election will determine the board majority and has prompted local interest groups to weigh in on the contest.

Goldbeck, a Democrat and CEO of the nationwide nonprofit Vet Voice Foundation, reported $225,428 in contributions this year through July 1, including hundreds of contributions from individual donors, as well as a $50,000 loan to her own campaign. Goldbeck had also spent $73,352 as of that date.

“My focus is campaigning the tried and true old-fashioned way, neighbor to neighbor, which if you ask me is still the best way to make change happen,” she said.

She also benefits from $72,000 contributed to a PAC called “Communities United to Elect Janessa Goldbeck for Supervisor 2023” — including $60,000 from the LGBTQ+ rights organization Equality California, $10,000from the law firm Singleton Schreiber and $2,000 from Assemblymember Chris Ward’s reelection campaign.

Goldbeck, who is gay, said support from the LGBTQ community is key in the race, especially in light of efforts to roll back its rights elsewhere. District 4 includes the Hillcrest neighborhood and other centers of San Diego’s LGBTQ population.

“The unprecedented assault on LGBTQ+ Americans makes this campaign more important than ever,” Goldbeck said.

San Diego City Councilmember Montgomery Steppe, also a Democrat, brought in $124,983by July 1 and spent $23,503. Her spokesperson Eva Posner said she’s using that to promote her candidacy through “advertisements, doorknocking, phone calls, meetand-greets and community outreach.”

Her biggest cash advantage, however, comes from more than half a million dollars in independent contributions. A PAC called “Real Working Families in Support of Montgomery Steppe for Board of Supervisors 2023” had drawn $550,000 from seven labor unions in support of her campaign by the start of this month, and has reported another $60,000 since then.

Crystal Irving, the president of SEIU Local 221, which contributed $100,000 to the PAC, called the council member “the champion working families need” and said she will “bring a new perspective to improve community safety and our homeless and housing crisis.”

Reichert, a Republican and cofounder of Reopen California who had challenged Fletcher for the seat in the general election last fall, had collected $72,315 in campaign contributions and has spent $24,822 by July 1. She said her campaign has focused on boosting voter turnout and informing voters of her role fighting COVID-19 restrictions, running a small business and leading substance use recovery programs, she said.

“My campaign has developed a robust Get Out The Vote effort,” Reichert said in an email. “Given that this is a special election and many people may be preoccupied with summer activities, it becomes crucial to ensure that everyone is aware of the upcoming election.”

Goldbeck pointed to a feature of the campaign finance filing deadline that allowed candidates to disclose their full list of donors either on July 6 or at a later filing date on July 31, arguing that her decision to release her list of donors early provided greater transparency than her rivals.

The other candidates are expected to disclose donor lists at the later date. Montgomery Steppe and Reichert said they had complied with all reporting guidelines and requirements and argued that Goldbeck’s loan to herself inflated her contributions total.