OCEANSIDE — The closely watched race for Oceanside mayor remains tight, with Deputy Mayor Ryan Keim holding a narrow 239-vote lead over incumbent Mayor Esther Sanchez as of Nov. 12.
With an estimated 7,963 ballots still left to count in the race, Sanchez, who first took office as mayor in 2020 after serving two decades as a council member, has a chance to close the gap.
Keim, who was appointed to the District 3 seat on the Oceanside City Council in 2019 and elected in 2020, is seeking to unseat Sanchez.
In the race for city treasurer, Phyllis Dominguez has taken a 793-vote lead over incumbent Treasurer Victor Roy, reversing previous results reported by The Coast News.
For the City Council, Jimmy Figueroa continues to lead in the District 3 race over opponents Laura Bassett, Tom DeMooy, and Austin Sorensen. Meanwhile, incumbent Councilmember Peter Weiss has secured his seat in District 4.
Oceanside voters have also shown strong support for a 10-year extension of Measure X, the city’s half-cent sales tax dedicated to public safety, infrastructure, and quality-of-life improvements.
In uncontested races, City Clerk Zeb Navarro won with 100% of the vote.
In Oceanside Unified School District races, incumbent Eleanor Evans holds the lead in Trustee Area No. 2 over challenger Emily Ortiz Wichmann, while incumbent Mike Blessing maintains a lead over Rosie Higuera in Trustee Area No. 5.
