Election 2024

Election 2024

Election Day will be on Tuesday, November 5, 2025, and you can:

Starting October 6, a mail ballot has been mailed to all registered voters in San Diego County and you can drop it off at any U.S. Postal Services or Registrar’s Official Ballot Drop Boxes from Tuesday October 8 through Election Day, Tuesday, November 5. If by USPS, mailed ballot must be postmarked before or on Election Day to count, and you are recommended to mail your ballot by no later than Tuesday, October 29 to ensure timely delivery.

This year, the Registrar’s Ballot Drop Box Locations are:

Escondido – 92025
Escondido Public Library 239 S Kalmia St Oct 8 – Nov 4:
Mon, Fri – Sat: 9 A.M. to 6 P.M.
Tue – Thu: 9 A.M. to 8 P.M.
Sun: Closed
Tue, Nov 5 (Election Day): 7 A.M. to 8 P.M.
HHSA North Inland Live Well Center 649 W Mission Ave #3 Oct 8 – Nov 4: Open 24 Hours
Tue, Nov 5 (Election Day): Closed at 8 P.M.
Major Market 1855 S Centre City Pkwy Oct 8 – Nov 4:
Mon – Sun: 6 A.M. to 9 P.M.
Tue, Nov 5 (Election Day): 6 A.M. to 8 P.M.
Oakmont of Escondido Hills 3012 Bear Valley Pkwy S Oct 8 – Nov 4:
Mon – Sun: 7 A.M. to 8 P.M.
Tue, Nov 5 (Election Day): 7 A.M. to 8 P.M.
Escondido – 92027
East Valley Community Center 2245 East Valley Pkwy Oct 8 – Nov 4:
Mon – Fri: 9 A.M. to 8:30 P.M.
Sat: 8:30 A.M. to 4:30 P.M.
Sun: Closed
Tue, Nov 5 (Election Day): 7 A.M. to 8 P.M.

To vote in-person, starting Monday, October 7, you can cast a ballot at San Diego Registrar of Voters‘ office at 5600 Overland Avenue, San Diego, CA 92123 from Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and on Election Day, from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Bring your sample and official mailed ballot with you! And if you’re still in line at 8:00 p.m. on Election Day, you’re still allowed to vote! Stay in line until it’s your turn to cast a ballot.

Or from Saturday, October 26 to Monday, November 4, you can cast a ballot at a vote center from Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and on Election Day, November 5, from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

This year, the Vote Center Locations are:

Escondido – 92025
Elks Lodge #1687 – Patio Area 2430 S Escondido Blvd November 2 to November 5
Girl Scouts Escondido Center 3050 Las Palmas Ave November 2 to November 5
North County Mall – Community Room 272 E Via Rancho Pkwy October 26 to November 5
Park Avenue Community Center-Oak Rm 728 N Broadway October 26 to November 5
Escondido – 92026
Reidy Creek Elem School-MPR 2869 N Broadway November 2 to November 5
Rincon Middle School-MPR 925 Lehner Ave November 2 to November 5
Rock Springs Elem School-Auditorium 1155 Deodar Rd November 2 to November 5
Escondido – 92027
Orange Glen High School-Small Gym 814 2200 Glenridge Rd, Use Bear Valley Pkwy November 2 to November 5
Rose Elementary School-Rm 24 906 N Rose St November 2 to November 5
Escondido – 92029
Del Lago Academy-Dance Rm B203 1740 Scenic Trails Way November 2 to November 5

For the most up-to-date official information on elections, check:

For coverage of the election or voting guides, check:

And check our past write-ups: How To Vote: a Escondido Voting Guide, General Election 2022, Undoing of Escondido Campaign Finance Reforms, Presidential Primary Election 2020 and 2018 Preliminary Election Result Summary.

To volunteer to Get Out the Vote (GOTV), signup to canvass, phone/text bank or write postcards with the Escondido Democratic Club, National Indivisible, Women for Kamala Harris & Postcards To Voters.

Escondido

Escondido Mayor and City Councilmembers are elected to serve four-years terms. In 2013, Escondido was drawn into four council districts as a result of a consent decree. So since then, the elections for Mayor, District 1 and District 2 are held during the Gubernatorial Midterms Elections (e.g. 2026, 2022, 2018, 2014) while District 3 and District 4 are held during the Presidential General Elections (e.g. 2024, 2020, 2016).

In 2022, Escondido was redistricted due to a new census, and the districts are different as illustrated in the maps below.

Escondido (2013 – 2022) Escondido (2023)
Escondido City District Map 2018 Escondido City District Map 2022

This year, Escondido will hold a municipal election for City Council District 3 and 4 and a measure ballot to add a one-cent local sales tax.

The Escondido Times-Advocate and Chamber of Commerce hosted and moderated a 2024 Escondido City Council Candidate Forum on Thursday, October 3, 2024, 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM at California Center for the Arts, Escondido Foundation Conference Center, 340 N Escondido Blvd. Video replay can be found on YouTube.

News and blogs coverage on the election:

District 3

The current councilmember, Christian Garcia (Republican), was appointed to the position in January 2023 by the Republican-majority City Council after Councilmember Joe Garcia (Republican) was elected to District 2 in 2022 and the seat was vacated. (Due to redistricting, the then-District 3 Councilmember Joe Garcia was no longer qualified for District 3 in this year’s election and decided to run for District 2 in 2022 instead completing the rest of his term.)

Councilmember Garcia is officially running for District 3 against Christine Spencer (running as an Independent) and Veronica Cigarroa (Democrat). Candidate statements and information can be found at Escondido’s Elections website. Note that Christine Spencer had also applied for District 3 vacancy: her interview can be found in the the City Council Meeting Broadcast, and her application is available here: City Council D3 Application: Christine Spencer.

Councilmember Garcia approved to criminalize our unhoused community while cutting homeless funding and without offering sufficient housing solutions and community-based services to address homelessness in Escondido:

During the Q&As at an election forum, Councilmember Garcia expressed support for privatizing and outsourcing operations of the California Center for the Arts like the city did to the Escondido Public Library in 2017, a process that he as a city councilmember approved in May for the city to receive proposals for operations of the center.

From his campaign finance filings up to June 30, 2024, Councilmember Garcia currently has $31,359.27 cash on hand and received more than $15,000 from businesses and political action committees, mainly involved in hospitality and real estates. He is on the Escondido Subcommittee for Housing as well as Budget, Downtown Parking and Utilities.

Name Amount
Western Manufactured Housing Association PAC $5,500
Infrastructure PAC of the Associated General Contractors $5,500
Escondido Hospitality Group LLC $2,000
Hospitality Lodging Group $1,001
California Taxpayers Coalition $750
Wells for Mayor 2022 $500
Total $15,251

He also received 18 individual donations totaling $13,000 from various executives and owners of hospitality or real estate businesses. Donations higher than $500 included:

Name Amount
R&V Management $7,050
Shiva Management $1,000
Sudberry Properties $1,000
Cal West Apartments $1,000
Quality Inn Escondido $500

And notably, he also received $250 from Sager Management, a company involved in an active development project, Daley Ranch Resort/Sager Ranch, in Escondido:

District 4

The current city councilmember, Mike Morasco (Republican), has been a councilmember since he was elected in 2012 for three 4-years terms (2012, 2016, 2020), but will be retiring from his office after the end of his current term this year. He is the father-in-law of Mayor Dane White (Republican).

Judy Fitzgerald (Republican) and Rod Howell (Democrat) are running for District 4. Candidate statements and information can be found at Escondido’s Elections website. Note that Judy Fitzgerald is a former board member of the Planning Commission from May 24, 2023 to March 31, 2024: her interview can be found in the City Council Meeting Broadcast, and her application then is available here.

During the Q&As at an election forum, Judy Fitzgerald expressed support for privatizing and outsourcing operations of the California Center for the Arts like the city did to the Escondido Public Library in 2017, a process that the city started by approving in May to receive proposals for operations of the center.

From her campaign finance filings up to June 30, 2024, Judy Fitzgerald currently has $43,207.22 cash on hand and received more than $4,000 from businesses and political action committees:

Name Amount
Infrastructure PAC of the Associated General Contractors $2,500
Nathu Investment Group $1,001
California Taxpayers Coalition $750
Total $4,251

She also received six individual donations that were greater than $1,000 and totaled $18,000. Of which four are from various business executives and owners:

Name Amount
Adamo Security Group $5,500
All American Plastic & Packaging $4,500
Henson’s Fix Auto $1,100
Shiva Management $1,000

Of Councilmember Morasco: during his tenure, he approved to close Escondido East Valley Public Branch Library in 2011 and to outsource public library operations of Escondido Public Library to an out-of-state company, Library Systems and Services, in 2017. He also approved to undo Escondido campaign finance reforms to benefit his and his party campaigns in 2021, including his son-in-law in his then campaign for Mayor.

And he approved to criminalize our unhoused community while cutting homeless funding and without offering sufficient housing solutions and community-based services to address homelessness in Escondido.

Measure I

Measure I proposes to raise the sales tax by one cent for the next 20 years. The proposed measure can be found on Escondido’s Measure I website.

Escondido has been facing budget deficits for the past several years (where our projected revenue is not meeting our budgeted expenses) and is projected to continue facing around $10 millions deficits for the next 5 years and to increase to $23 millions by 2036. See Escondido’s Budget Deficit Has Taken a Toll on the City That May Take Years to Correct.

To address the recent deficits, the city had explored increasing the sales tax rate: in 2022, the city ballot measure for a 3/4 cent increase failed by only 447 votes (1.2%).

Escondido has a 7.75% sales tax rate where for each $7.75 collected, $6 goes to the State, $0.50 goes to Transnet, $0.25 goes to the County and $1 goes to Escondido. If Measure I is successfully approved by voters, then our sales tax rate would be raised to 8.75% with $2 going to the City for every $8.75 collected.

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Sales tax revenue contributed around 39% of the city general fund revenue. From the total general fund, around 41% goes to the Police Department, 24% Fire, 10% Public Works, 8% Community Services, 6% Community Development and 10% all other expenses.

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See Escondido Discussion 2023 Slides (PDF), Escondido Discussion 2022 Replay, Community Budget Workshops Spring 2024 Slides (PDF) and Escondido City Budgets.

Measure I initially started as a citizen’s initiative to raise the sales tax by one cent for the next 20 years before being adopted as a measure by the city. The political action committee, Escondido Citizens for Safety, behind the citizen’s initiative reported receiving $165,000 donations from various city employees and contractors as of June 30, 2024:

NameAmount
Escondido Police Association PAC$75,000
Escondido Firefighters Assoc EFLAG PAC$75,000
Library Systems & Services Inc$10,000
California Teamsters Public Affairs Council PAC$5,000

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