Coronado’s elections this year have been filled with controversial endorsements and character accusations, but candidates for mayor and city council say they’re distracting from the city’s important issues.
Dozens of paid political letters were published in local newspapers on the island. An email expressing support from the current mayor has come under legal scrutiny. And vitriolic comments from Coronado residents and candidates on social media set the race on a heated path.
But mayoral and City Council candidates say this kind of divisiveness is not what voters want and doesn’t represent the majority of Coronado residents. Instead, the focus should be on the key issues facing the city of about 19,000 people.
These include Coronado’s efforts to comply with state housing mandates, coordination with the U.S. Navy and other government agencies, and the ongoing challenges of the Tijuana River sewage crisis and resulting beach closures. There are also infrastructure projects and residents’ concerns about traffic and e-bike safety.
“If you focus your time on the importance of Coronado and what’s important to Coronado, you won’t be able to spend as much time on a lot of this partisan divide,” said Andrew Gade, who is running for City Council. I guess so.” He has no support from any political party.
He is one of six candidates running for the two open seats, along with Mark Fleming, Christine Mott, Laura Wilkinson Sinton, Amy Steward and Mark Warner.
Three men are running for mayor of Coronado, all current City Council members Mike Donovan, John Duncan, and Casey Tanaka.
Mr. Tanaka and Mr. Donovan face term limits, while Mr. Duncan still has only half his term left. If elected, the city would have to decide how to fill his seat, either through a special election or a City Council appointment.
The San Diego County Democratic Party endorsed Sinton and Mott for City Council and added Tanaka to its voter guide. Duncan, Fleming and Warner are backed by local Republicans.
But candidates running for mayor and city council in Coronado do not indicate their party affiliation on their ballots, and many local issues do not fall neatly along partisan lines.
A local campaign sign in the front yard of a home in Coronado, California, on Saturday, October 19, 2024. (Meg McLaughlin/San Diego Union-Tribune)
Coronado has historically been favorable for Republican voter registration, but the trend toward conservatives has been less pronounced in recent years, and changes in the electorate could lead to more contentious races.
As of the end of September, 3,550 Democrats and 4,198 Republicans were registered. An additional 2,617 voters did not state their preferred party.
In 2020, Joe Biden narrowly defeated Donald Trump there by just over 730 votes, becoming the first Democratic presidential candidate to lead the city in decades. In 2016, Trump defeated Coronado over Hillary Clinton by less than 200 votes.
“For a long time, this was known as a very conservative bastion, but I think that’s changed,” Mott said. “I think we’re becoming more and more of a purple place as new people move in with new perspectives, and maybe that’s why the old guard is reacting so strongly.”
In most cases, the nine candidates are not directly competing. Instead, their supporters rely on media sources and online spaces.
Both direct criticism and support for the candidate were published through opinion pieces in the Coronado Eagle and the Journal, and a website was created specifically to oppose Sinton.
An independent spending committee called the Community Leadership Coalition, which is primarily funded by the Kumeyaay Nation Sicuan Band, awarded about $2,880 to pro-Duncan mail carriers and $2,880 to anti-Sinton mail carriers, according to a report filed by the group. and about $1,260 to Tanaka opponents. This month’s city.
A local campaign sign in the front yard of a home in Coronado, California, on Saturday, October 19, 2024. (Meg McLaughlin/San Diego Union-Tribune)
But the candidates’ own campaigns are raising and spending even more money.
In this year’s mayoral race, Mr. Duncan raised $29,000 in donations, gave his campaign a $15,000 loan and spent nearly $36,000. Tanaka raised $14,000 a year in donations and spent just over half of that. Donovan then raised about $8,000 and loaned the campaign $15,000.
Among the city council candidates, Sinton raised more donations than any other candidate, raising just over $14,200. Steward is right behind her with about $12,500.
Residents with strong opinions about candidates and local issues get into arguments on social media, including in the comments section of the Coronado Happenings Facebook group, criticizing each other’s personalities and politics.
But some disputes go beyond online fights.
Earlier this month, Mayor Richard Bailey sent out an email noting local support and warning voters not to vote for Mott and Sinton. The email included a sticker with the city’s crown symbol, which Mott and Sinton said gave the impression it was approval from the mayor’s office.
Both candidates contacted the state attorney general’s office and filed a complaint with the city, alleging that the emails violated California election law and Coronado law. The city manager told Mott in an email that the charges have been sent to the city’s special prosecutor for review.
Bailey, who served as mayor for eight years, said he sent the list of supporters on his behalf, not through the mayor’s office. The email was sent from his personal account.
Mike Donovan, a mayoral candidate who is not endorsed by any of the major political parties, said he has noticed an increase in partisanship over the past decade, but that it has “gradually increased” in recent years.
“I have never sought support from any political party,” he said.
Mr. Bailey supports Mr. Duncan for mayor, and Mr. Fleming and Mr. Warner for city council, all of whom have the support of the Republican Party.
The three candidates were also listed in the voter guide of RMNNT, a conservative political group with ties to the Awakened Church, which is seeking to establish a campus in Coronado.
All three have asked the group to remove their names from the voter guide and say they are not affiliated with the group. RMNNT did not respond to requests for comment and had not removed any candidates from the guide as of Friday.
“I want nothing to do with those people,” Warner said. “I welcome their opinions, but I don’t agree with them.”
Mr. Warner and other candidates, including Mr. Mott, Mr. Sinton and Mr. Gade, argue that this type of endorsement or promotion can be a political distraction, and that candidates are more likely to attack than talk about real issues. They argue that we must spend time responding to the
A local campaign sign in the front yard of a home in Coronado, California, on Saturday, October 19, 2024. (Meg McLaughlin/San Diego Union-Tribune)
All nine candidates cited the wastewater crisis as one of Tijuana’s most pressing concerns. Coronado’s beaches are frequently closed due to poor water quality, and the crisis has repeatedly disrupted Navy training.
The city’s housing allocation is also a top priority. Coronado will be required to add 912 new housing units over the next few years under a settlement reached last year after years of dispute between the city and state over mandated 2021 local housing goals. are. The city has been working to cushion the impact of adding about 1,000 new units to the island, but there are still details for city leaders to iron out.
Candidates also cited infrastructure improvements to the city’s stormwater system, which was affected by January’s winter storm, as well as traffic safety.
Despite all the hate, candidates hope these issues will prevail once the election is over and a new mayor and city council are sworn in.
“At the national level, we’re very divided, and that extends to the local level,” said Steward, a City Council candidate.
But she said she feels Coronado has a strong community, citing people who volunteer at the hospital and Rotary Club, and local events like the Coronado Island Film Festival that bring residents together.
“We all know each other, we all like each other, we all work together,” she said, adding that she thinks “this discord will fade a little bit” after Nov. 5. he added.
