Welch secures Emeryville seat; measure results close

Residents in three Bay Area counties hit the polls Tuesday for a city council race and several measures affecting school district funding and zoning changes. Here are the results so far:

In Alameda County, a seat on the Emeryville City Council went to Courtney Welch, who defeated Charlotte Danielsson-Chang in a special election. Out of 1,158 votes, Welch received 55.35% of the vote.

A communications and policy director at the Bay Area Community Land Trust, a nonprofit that advocates for affordable housing, Welch will be the first Black woman elected to the Emeryville City Council in more than 30 years. She ran on a platform of bolstering Emeryville’s revenue stream, addressing homelessness, expanding access to affordable housing and increasing communication between law enforcement and city residents.

In San Mateo County, Measure A in the town of Woodside that would allow for more outdoor gathering and dining areas by changing existing zoning rules is a nail-biter, with 848 voting yes and 828 voting no. A Measure B parcel tax that would raise an estimated $4.6 million per year for the Menlo Park City School District looks likely to pass, with 73% voting yes and 26% voting no. The measure requires a two-thirds majority to pass.

The county will be providing another update on the results at 4:30 p.m. today.

In Santa Clara County, two parcel tax measures that would increase school district funding look likely to pass, according to latest Wednesday afternoon update. Measure A in the Berryessa Union School District would raise an estimated $1.8 million per year has 70% voting yes and 29% voting no. Measure B in the Los Gatos Union School District that would raise an estimated $3.2 million per year has 75% voting yes and 24% voting no. Both require a two-thirds majority to pass.