REGION — Democrat Darshana Patel has declared victory in the competitive race to represent the 76th Assembly District after maintaining a steady lead over Republican Kristie Bruce-Lane this past week.
Patel, a research scientist and Poway Unified School District board member, captured a seven-point lead over Bruce-Lane as of Monday night, with the former Olivenhain Municipal Water District board member trailing by just under 14,000 votes. With only 10,354 votes remaining to be counted in the race, Bruce-Lane’s path to victory is no longer possible.
On Tuesday morning, Patel thanked those who had worked on her campaign, including volunteers and her family, as well as all the voters who made their voices heard.
“After losing my mother when I was 14, I knew I wanted to help people like her, so I became a medical research scientist. Now as a mother of my own children, I decided to run for State Assembly because I want to help make our communities stronger, healthier, safer, and more affordable for the generations ahead,” Patel said.
“The voters have placed their trust in me to advocate for them in the State Assembly, and I take that responsibility very seriously. I am committed to fighting for their needs and interests, and to making the wellbeing of our communities my highest priority.”
The Coast News has reached out to Bruce-Lane for comment.
Initial election results showed Patel with a 52-47 percent lead over Bruce-Lane, which grew by two percentage points to around 53-46 as of Monday night.
Patel was far from a shoo-in for the seat, which represents a district with stronger Republican voting power than just a couple of years ago. The state’s 2021 district redrawing effort moved much of the 77th district into the 76th, which now represents San Marcos, Escondido, Rancho Santa Fe, Carmel Valley, Carmel Mountain Ranch and Rancho Bernardo.
This was Bruce-Lane’s second bid for the seat after her unsuccessful 2022 run against Democratic incumbent Brian Maienschein. With Mainschein termed out after 12 years in the state legislature (he ran and was defeated this election in the San Diego City Attorney race), some believed Bruce-Lane could capitalize on the red voters to finally secure the seat.
Primary election results indicated that the race would be competitive, with Bruce-Lane earning just under 50% of the vote compared to 34% by Patel and 16% by candidate Joseph Rocha, both Democrats.
Patel far outpaced Bruce-Lane in fundraising, receiving over $4.1 million in contributions since the start of the year, compared to Bruce-Lane’s $1.3 million.
The race turned nasty at several points, with much of Bruce-Lane’s campaign focused on Patel’s alleged failures while serving on the Poway Unified School Board and Patel accusing Bruce-Lane of being a “right-wing extremist.”
Bruce-Lane had said that Patel demonstrated “gross negligence” while serving as board president last fall when former Poway Unified superintendent Marian Kim Phelps was accused of bullying softball players at Del Norte High School, stating that she “protected a bully who harassed students.”
Patel has addressed Bruce-Lane’s criticisms on her website, stating that she initiated an investigation into Phelps while on the board and voted to fire her earlier this year based on the investigation’s findings.
Bruce-Lane has also stated that Patel wants to defund the police, lied about currently working as a research scientist, and holds “radical San Francisco ideology.” Patel, in turn, has stated that Bruce-Lane wants to ban abortion in California, opposes common sense gun restrictions, and is supported by far-right organizations.
Patel also highlighted Bruce-Lane’s “outrageous” 2022 lawsuit against the families of two 6-year-old boys who she claimed were bullying her son. Bruce-Lane sought $48 million in damages from the families and school and took the unusual step of naming the young boys in the lawsuit.
In the 77th Assembly District race, incumbent Democratic Assemblymember Tasha Boerner secured her seat with 140,262 votes, or 60.14%, over Republican challenger James Browne, who tallied 92,967 votes, or 39.86%. Boerner’s lead is insurmountable, and she has been unofficially declared the winner.
Election results will be certified in December.
Samantha Nelson contributed to this report.
