With few votes remaining to be counted, incumbent Ed Musgrove and newcomer Danielle LeBlang have held onto early leads in the race for two seats on the San Marcos City Council.
Musgrove had 6,820 votes as of the county registrar of voters’ Thursday evening update, a total that represented 64.5 percent of all ballots cast in the city’s District 4. His challenger, Natasha Zander Hilmes, tallied 3,748.
In District 3, LeBlang led challenger Alan Geraci, 5,513 to 4,136, taking 57 percent of ballots cast.
And the city’s Measure Q, a one-cent sales tax increase, also fared well at the polls with 60 percent support, 24,207 voters marking yes and 15,890 marking no. With just 20,000 votes left to count countywide, those totals are not likely to change much in future updates. The measure is estimated to increase city revenue by about $20 million per year, with funds being used to support infrastructure maintenance, safety and emergency response.
Musgrove, a retired San Diego County sheriff’s captain and LeBlang, an attorney, both listed public safety investments as a significant priority during their coming four-year terms in office.
They reacted to their wins on election night after an initial count had both solidly ahead.
Musgrove called his win an “affirmation that the residents of San Marcos trust the manner in which I and my fellow councilmembers are guiding our city.
“We have a lot of work that will continue as planned to keep our city moving forward.”
LeBlang thanked her constituents for their support.
“I’m excited to serve the residents of San Marcos,” she said.
