It’s still too close to call any leads in the race to replace outgoing California State Assemblymember Tim Grayson, according to unofficial results immediately after the polls closed.
Contra Costa County Board of Education Trustee Anamarie Avila Farais, businesswoman Sonia Ledo and Antioch City Councilwoman Monica Wilson held a three-way lead out of four hopefuls to represent District 15, which spans Martinez, Concord, Antioch, Brentwood and large swaths of unincorporated Contra Costa County.
Former Contra Costa County Supervisor Karen Mitchoff was trailing Tuesday night.
These early tallies are not yet official results, and were limited to vote-by-mail ballots and voters who cast their ballots in-person prior to Election Day. By Saturday, Contra Costa County election officials said only about one in 10 voters had turned in their ballots statewide.
The top two finishers in the March 5 primary will face off on the November ballot for the two-year legislative term.
Ledo did not respond to interview requests, but she was the sole Republican on the ballot.
Anamarie Avila Farias, a Contra Costa County Board of Education trustee who previously served on the Martinez City Council, hopes to center affordable housing, wage inequality, public safety and education in her campaign for California’s Assembly.
After serving on the city’s planning and marina commissions for several years, Avila Farias was elected to represent her hometown during one term on the Martinez City Council in 2012 — the first Latina to do so.
Additionally, the 50-year-old policymaker highlighted her appointments to the California Housing Finance Agency’s board of directors — first in 2015 by former Gov. Jerry Brown, and then Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2021 — as proof that she understands the struggles that homeowners, renters and unhoused people in the community face.
After three decades in the workforce, she said her experience dealing with education and school district issues have been deeply intertwined with concerns of housing and workforce development — issues that often disproportionately impact minorities and underrepresented residents. Avila Farias said lawmakers must continue to adapt and pivot to create different policies that can keep up with modern problems, especially in a county with such a diverse cultural history where Latinos now make up nearly half of the population.
While Wilson was the first person to file paperwork for a 2024 Assembly campaign back in May 2022 — more than two years prior to the other three candidates, according to county records — she officially announced her bid in June.
She became the first Black woman elected to the Antioch City Council in 2012, where she focused on advocacy related to minimizing human trafficking, renter protections, reforming police responses to emergencies and addressing mental health across the city. Notably, her push to develop a 24-hour non-police crisis team in the city helped launch the program last year — the only one of its kind in the county.
Now after four terms in Antioch, the 55-year-old said she wants to bring her deep knowledge of issues to Sacramento and legislate policies that can be implemented statewide.
Karen Mitchoff decided not to seek reelection to the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors in 2023, but said she wasn’t able to enjoy retirement long before she started considering running for the state assembly.
The 69-year-old Pleasant Hill resident said she officially entered the race because she felt the 12 years she spent in that role would be a boon for constituents, especially since her former supervisorial district makes up nearly half of District 15.
If elected, she said she would be a “straight shooter” when addressing issues of public safety, crime and housing, emphasizing the need to hold people accountable, whether in the form of lawlessness within the community, abuses of the California Environmental Quality Act or one-size-fits-all housing solutions crafted by state legislators.
Two of Mitchoff’s top priorities — gun control and elder care — hit close to home; her brother was killed in 2018 by gun violence and she is helping her 93-year-old mother navigate the county’s home and healthcare options.
Throughout her career, Mitchoff has served on several boards, including the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, Association of Bay Area Governments, Contra Costa Transportation Authority and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Conservancy. She said that background gives her an advantage to understand complex issues across District 15, including the refineries that operate along Contra Costa County’s shoreline, especially as they work to reduce harmful emissions while beginning to transition away from fossil fuels.
This story will be updated.