Early voting results show Kristina Duggan appears on track to become the new representative of Long Beach’s 3rd City Council district after taking an early lead over her opponent, Kailee Caruso in Tuesday night’s election.
With only mail-in ballots counted, Duggan jumped ahead 58% to 42%, and as votes continued to be tallied, that lead expanded, reaching 60% to 40% by the end of Tuesday night. Votes could continue to trickle in and be tallied all the way to Dec. 5, but Duggan’s lead of over 2,000 votes would be difficult to overcome.
Duggan, who finished first in the March primary, ran to the right of her opponent, saying she will enforce the city’s anti-camping ordinance to address homelessness, rein in government spending and bolster police.
Caruso was been endorsed by the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, multiple Democratic clubs and many in the more progressive faction of the council.
The city’s 3rd Council District includes the Southeast Long Beach communities of Naples, Belmont Heights and Belmont Shore, and extends as far north as the Traffic Circle after last year’s redistricting process shifted district lines.
The district has had some of the higher voter turnouts when compared to other districts in the city and was at 26% voter participation heading into Tuesday night’s election. About 25% of those were cast by registered Republicans while over half were Democratic voters.
For up-to-date election results, visit lbpost.com/elections.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with more recent vote totals. An earlier version of this story said Caruso was endorsed by Councilmember Rex Richardson. He did not formally endorse her during the election.