Mullin wins race to replace Rep. Speier
California Assembly Member Kevin Mullin, a former mayor of South San Francisco, defeated a fellow Democrat, San Mateo County Supervisor David Canepa, in the race to replace retiring Rep. Jackie Speier in the congressional seat representing the Peninsula.
With 58% of votes counted, Mullin had 56% of the vote, while Canepa had 44%.
“I am humbled and excited to share that I am projected to win a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, from CA’s 15th District,” Mullin wrote on Twitter the day after the election. “I am grateful for the voters of San Mateo County and San Francisco who have entrusted me with this privilege, and honored to succeed (Jackie Speier).”
Mullin, who had been Speier’s district director when she was in the state Senate, secured several important endorsements that helped usher him toward victory, including Gov. Gavin Newsom, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and perhaps most importantly, from Speier herself, as well as a host of local officials.
“Thrilled that Congressmanelect @kevinmullin will be replacing me in Congress representing (San Mateo) county residents and some of (San Francisco) county residents-the best district in the country!” Speier tweeted Monday.
Mullin’s opponent conceded Tuesday night.
“Running for Congress has been the most exciting year of my life and I’m so proud of my team. We fought hard and we never gave up,” Canepa wrote on Twitter. “Congratulations to Kevin Mullin, we wish him the very best of luck and look forward to working with him on the most pressing issues our nation faces.”
Speier, who has held the seat since 2008, announced her retirement last November, catching many by surprise.
She has said she decided to dedicate her life to public service in 1978 when, as an aide to Peninsula Rep. Leo Ryan, she was shot five times while on a trip to investigate Jonestown, a settlement in Guyana where more than 900 followers of cult leader Jim Jones died the same day. Ryan and four others died at the scene.
Throughout her time in Congress, Speier repeatedly drew on her experiences not only as a survivor of that shooting, but also as a person who has been sexually assaulted and who has had an abortion due to pregnancy complications, to push for legislation to ban assault weapons and to protect women and other vulnerable populations.
When Speier announced she was endorsing Mullin in December, he called her “irreplaceable” and praised her work.
“It’s a little daunting, I’ll just be candid with you,” Mullin said in a news conference. “Feels a little bit like Joey Bart trying to succeed Buster Posey.”