……………………..U P D A T E ……… November 17th
The latest new totals from the Registrar of Voters shows Holt Pfeiler adding 56 votes,
and Gallo 49. That makes a new running total of 9,743 for Ed Gallo to 9,667 for Lori
Holt Pfeiler. Holt Pfeiler is now just 76 votes behind. There are still 35,000 ballots to
tabulate countywide. Stay tuned !
Quite a see-saw struggle still continuing in Escondido for a vitalcity council seat! A week ago former councilman Ed Gallo zoomed to a 148-vote lead over Lori Holt Pfeiler, after Holt Pfeiler had earlier closed to within 33 votes.
Since then, the 18-year council veteran (Mayor Holt Pfeiler) has rallied again and reduced Gallo’s lead to 83 votes (9694 to 9611).
There are still 45,000 ballots remaining countywide to process, and Rostra estimates about 1,500 of those are from Escondido. So it is still possible for Lori Holt Pfeiler to catch up, though it won’t be easy.
Mayor Holt Pfeiler, who has survived many a contrary political wind in her 18 years on the Escondido Council, is seen as a moderate. Ed Gallo is an articulate conservative.
Ed Gallo’s election could actually mean a 2-seat swing for conservatives. Here is how that scenario might play out:
The new 5-member city council will have to fill a vacancy early next year, since conservative councilman Sam Abed was elected Mayor on November 2nd. Should Gallo finally be seated, he may form a 3-vote majority with Sam Abed and Councilwoman Marie Waldron (who is a Rostra correspondent) to choose that successor.
This was the best election cycle for conservative Escondidans in a decade. Stay tuned to SD Rostra for further updates.