Hollister
– Incumbent District 4 Supervisor Reb Monaco had a slight lead
over challenger Tracie Cone, but as of press time on Tuesday night
the race was too close to call.
Hollister – Incumbent District 4 Supervisor Reb Monaco had a slight lead over challenger Tracie Cone, but as of press time on Tuesday night the race was too close to call.
The latest polling numbers available Tuesday night had Monaco leading with 50.79 percent of the vote compared to Cone’s 49.21 percent. With 39 percent of the votes counted, Monaco had 1,291 votes, 40 more than Cone. Monaco stayed ahead in the polls throughout the night as election officials tallied the votes, but Cone was never far behind.
“It’s been a tough race,” Monaco said. “I feel like my constituents still support me, they still feel like I’m doing a good job.”
With the race still extremely close, Cone said she didn’t think the final result of the election would be known before today.
“I’m extremely happy with where I am right now,” Cone said late Tuesday night.
Monaco, running for his second term on the Board of Supervisors, outspent Cone 3-to-1 on the campaign trail, spending $10,188 compared to Cone’s $1,282, according to campaign finance records from October. Monaco ran on his record as a Supervisor, including his work to establish a parks and recreation committee, among other things.
Cone, a respected journalist and former publisher of the Pinnacle Newspaper in Hollister, focused on encouraging growth while preserving the character of the community during her campaign. She stood on her record as the owner of the Pinnacle, which included warning officials about the impact of rapid development on Hollister’s sewer system, among other things.
County resident Kathy McJunkin said she voted for Cone because she felt it was time for a change in leadership.
“I felt (Cone) was the best person for the job,” she said outside the Ladd Lane Elementary School polling place Tuesday night. “I like her backbone.”
Other voters voiced a different opinion. When resident Tom Stevens cast his vote for Monaco Tuesday night, it was because he said he didn’t think Cone would be able to bring the community together.
“Tracie Cone is the single most divisive force I’ve seen in this county since I moved here in the early 1990s,” he said. “She was not a consensus-builder when she was a publisher and I have no reason to believe that she’ll be one now.”
Stevens said he thought Monaco was a doing a good job and wanted to give him an opportunity to continue.
When Monaco faced Cone and County Clerk John Hodges in June, he received 36 percent of the vote, beating Cone’s 33 percent by 82 votes. Hodges was dropped from the race after the primary.
Brett Rowland covers public safety for the Free Lance. He can be reached at 637-5566 ext. 332 or br******@fr***********.com.
