Two weeks ago, we noted news stories about the efforts of George Soros and other deep-pocketed left-wing donors from outside the counties in question to pour big bucks into efforts to oust incumbent district attorneys and replace them with soft-on-crime alternates. That drive did a "face plant" last night.
In Sacramento County, first-term DA Anne Marie Schubert, a leader in the proposition fights on criminal law, defeated "progressive" challenger Noah Phillips by a two-to-one margin according to the
county's morning-after tally with all precincts reporting.
In San Diego, a megabuck and a half from George Soros was not enough to convince the voters to put defense attorney Geneviéve Jones-Wright in the top prosecutor's chair. The appointed incumbent, career prosecutor Summer Stephan,
won a full term, also by two-to-one.
In Alameda County (Oakland and surrounding area), incumbent Nancy O'Malley has a three-to-two lead in the morning-after
results. The fact she was targeted at all demonstrates that having solid Democratic Party backing is no guarantee one won't be attacked by the "progressive" piranha. (Cal. DA races are nonpartisan, but partisan leaders can weigh in with endorsements. Sen. Kamala Harris endorsed Ms. O'Malley.)
In Contra Costa County (at the north end of the East Bay area), the situation is a bit more complicated. The outside money backed the incumbent, Diana Becton, who was appointed by the board of supervisors after the elected DA crashed and burned. This election appears to be headed for a runoff, as Ms. Becton fell just short of a majority, Nate Gartrell and Aaron Davis
report for the East Bay Times. Challenger Paul Graves made the runoff with 42%. Crackpot Lawrence Strauss, who announced he would never seek the death penalty for the murder of a police officer because "it's part of the risk they take," (see
this post), finished a very distant third.
Elsewhere:
Riverside County DA Mike Hestrin was reelected with over 2/3 of the vote.
Yolo County DA Jeff Reisig was reelected, defeating Deputy PD Dean Johansson by about 20%. (Yolo is west of Sacramento, a mix of agricultural areas, industrial West Sacto., and the People's Republic of Davis.)
Stanislaus County appears to be headed for a runoff, with incumbent Birgit Fladager falling short of a majority and facing challenger DDA John Mayne in the fall. Two defense attorneys trail in third and fourth places and are eliminated.
Orange County is also headed for a runoff between incumbent DA Tony Rackauckas and County Supervisor and former DDA Todd Spitzer.
Finally, one sad note. Our friend and comrade-in-arms Michael Ramos was not reelected in San Bernardino County. There was big money in this race, which undoubtedly had an effect, but it was inside rather than outside. Joe Nelson
reports for the San Bernardino Sun:
Jason Anderson defeated incumbent Mike Ramos in the San Bernardino
County District Attorney's race, according to returns posted early
Wednesday.
Anderson outraised Ramos by more than two-and-a-half to one and was
heavily supported by deep-pocketed Rancho Cucamonga developers Jim
Previti and Jeff Burum, a vindicated defendant in the ill-fated Colonies
corruption case. The Colonies case, where prosecutors allege bribery
drove a $102 million settlement between the county and Burum's investor
group, Colonies Partners LP, in November 2006, ended last year with
Burum and two co-defendants acquitted and a fourth defendant having all
charges dropped after his jury deadlocked in favor of acquittal.
I don't know anything about the Colonies case and can't comment on whether the prosecution was justified. What I do know is that Mike Ramos has been a leader in the fight for justice in California, and I am sorry to see him leave this office.
Update: The ACLU of Northern California put out a remarkable piece of spin in
this press release. They title it "Running for Elected Prosecutor Will Never Be the Same." Conspicuously absent is any claim that their preferred candidates actually won any of the elections. Because they didn't. Will all future DA's races be like this year? Will the people dumping large amounts of outside cash into these races continue doing so when they get zero return on investment? That is surely not a foregone conclusion.
