Republican Anthony Cannella led Democrat Anna Caballero early
Wednesday in the heated 12th Senate District race, and the GOP’s
Tom Berryhill appeared to be easily winning the 14th District.
John Holland
Republican Anthony Cannella led Democrat Anna Caballero early Wednesday in the heated 12th Senate District race, and the GOP’s Tom Berryhill appeared to be easily winning the 14th District.
With 93 percent of precincts reporting early, Cannella, the mayor of Ceres, had 64,571 votes or 53.1 percent.
Caballero, an assemblywoman and former mayor of Salinas, had 57,200 votes, or 46.9 percent.
Berryhill, a Republican who has served in the Assembly since 2006, won 71,288 votes, or 66.5 percent, with 34.2 percent of the precincts reporting. Democratic opponent Larry Johnson of Clovis had 35,972 votes, or 33.5 percent.
The Cannella-Caballero race was one of the most hard fought in the state, with heavy spending and plenty of negative campaigning.
Cannella, a private engineer, said he would work for “common sense” regulation and reduced taxes if he is elected. He noted the high unemployment rate.
“I want to work very hard to get people back to work,” said Cannella, son of former Democratic lawmaker Sal Cannella. “That’s my goal.”
Caballero cited her work on water, budget and other issues during the campaign.
“Win or lose, one of the greatest things about this election was that it gave me an opportunity to meet people,” she said Tuesday night.
Democrats have a strong edge in voter registration in the 12th, yet it has been represented since 2002 by Republican Jeff Denham, who was elected Tuesday to the House of Representatives. Democrats eyed the seat because it would help them reach the two-thirds majority needed to pass a budget without GOP votes.
Caballero had spent $2,225,627 as of Oct. 16; Cannella had spent $1,263,940, according to campaign finance reports.
Cannella was leading in the San Joaquin Valley portion of the district, which accounts for about three-fourths of the voters. Caballero was ahead in Monterey County, her base.
The district includes part or all of Stanislaus, Merced, Madera, Monterey and San Benito counties.
Should Cannella win, the Ceres City Council will have to decide whether to fill the vacant mayor’s seat via appointment or special election.
The 14th District seat came open when Republican incumbent Dave Cogdill declined to seek re-election. He has been elected Stanislaus County assessor.
Berryhill said he would continue to work on boosting the economy, expanding water supplies and supporting law enforcement over the next four years.
“The No. 1 priority that everyone has out there is putting people back to work,” he said.
Berryhill said he would seek bipartisan solutions in the Democrat-dominated Senate, as he has done in the Assembly.
Republicans have a 47 percent to 34 percent edge in voter registration in the 14th District, which takes in all or part of Stanislaus, San Joaquin, Ma-dera, Fresno, Tuolumne and Mariposa counties.
Berryhill reported spending $486,357 as of Oct. 16. Johnson, a retired airline pilot who owns an aviation insurance company, did not file
