Mariposa County election clerk Brian Watson collects ballots from the drop box outside the county clerk’s office in Mariposa. Workers spent several hours tabulating results Tuesday night and will continue to update results as mailed ballots come in. Photo by Tom Lyden
Some rules in a rural county might be considered a little flexible. The deadline for voting is not one of them.
“But traffic was terrible,” yelled a flustered woman who squealed into the parking lot waving her ballot at 8:03 p.m.
“Sorry,” said the calm election worker, who was emptying the ballot drop box. Polls close at 8 p.m. It is non-negotiable.
That said, California is excruciatingly slow at tabulating results as mailed ballots, postmarked by election day, June 2, continue to trickle in.
But with 55 percent of the 11,756 mailed ballots in Mariposa County tabulated, the trend lines are pretty clear.
Assessor/Recorder
In the county’s Assessor/Recorder race, which was more high profile and contentious than the position might suggest, incumbent Tammie Guenthart has 57 percent of the vote compared to 43 percent for her challenger, Jenifer Canter.
If those numbers hold, Guenthart will be declared the winner.
In the three way contest for District 1 County Supervisor, Lisa Edelheit (41 percent) and Stanley Bissmeyer (35 percent) will be heading to the Nov. 3 general election as the top two vote getters because neither candidate achieved more than 50 percent of the vote.
Adam McLane finished third with 25 percent of the vote.
Running unopposed on the ballot were incumbents Jeff Aranguena for Mariposa County School Superintendent, Danette Toso for District 3 Supervisor, Luis Mercado for Auditor and Courtney Progner Morrow for Treasurer/Tax Collector/ County Clerk.
Defense attorney Neal Douglass was running unopposed for Mariposa County Superior Court Judge, to fill the seat vacated by the retirement of Judge Michael Fagalde.
In the newly redrawn 5th Congressional District, which still includes Mariposa County, Republican Rep. Tom McClintock was declared the winner with 63 percent of the vote over Democrat
Michael Masuda with 23 percent. The two will face off in November.
California governor
In the crowded race for California governor, with 62 candidates on the ballot, Mariposa County was the mirror image of results statewide.
Republican Steve Hilton captured 34 percent of the vote in Mariposa County, follow by Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco with 24 percent and Democrat billionaire Tom Steyer with 16 percent of the vote.
Democrat and former Obama Administration Secretary of Health & Human Services, Xavier Becerra, came in fourth with 15 percent of the vote.
But statewide, Becerra was declared the winner of the nonpartisan primary with 27 percent of the vote and will likely be joined by Hilton in the November general election, who captured 26 percent of the vote.
Tom Steyer finished third with 21 percent, followed by Bianco in a distant fourth place with 11 percent.
State Senate District 4
If there was a surprise locally in the primary, it may have been State Senate District 4, which includes Mariposa County and a dozen other counties in the Central Valley and Sierra foothills.
Democrat Jaron Brandon currently has 40 percent of the vote with a wide margin over Republican Alexandra Duarte with 32 percent, according to results from the California Secretary of State.
Incumbent Republican Marie Alvarado-Gil trails in third place with 28 percent of the vote.
The results in Mariposa County show a closer three-way contest between Brandon (36 percent), Duarte (32 percent) and Alvarado Gil (31 percent).
It is a stunning reversal of fortune for Alvardo-Gil, who switched parties in 2024 and became a Republican. She raised over $1 million in an effort to retain her seat, with many contributions coming from out of state.
Alvarado-Gil has been dogged by controversy after her former chief of staff, Chad Condit, accused her of sexual misconduct and coercing him into a sexual encounter when they were visiting Mariposa.
Brandon is a Tuolumne County supervisor who raised only $300,000, mostly from small donors.
“This race has been defined by two people tearing each other apart, and I’ve been happy not to be a part of that and instead go to folks living rooms and talk about housing or fixing potholes,” Brandon told the Modesto Bee on election night.
The election results are considered unofficial until county election officials report final results to the Secretary of State by July 3.
The Secretary of State will certify the results on July 10.
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