Total Placer County Turnout 54%. 115,266. The numbers don’t lie:
Total Republican Votes for President: 54181 or 47% – down a fraction of a point below 47.4% Registration
Total Democrat Votes for President: 47203 or 41% – up a whopping 14% over 27% Dem Registration
Total 3rd Party Votes for President: 2379 or 2%
Total DTS Ballot (You can take a non-partisan ballot and I saw a ton) / Undervoted Ballots for President (11,503): 10%
In Placer County – the Democrats OUTPERFORMED the statewide average of an 8 point boost by a whopping 6%. Add in that the Rep vote missed the mark and you have a nearly 15 point swing. As in 2012, nearly $100k was spent on altering the outcome of the GOP Cent Com election – based on the results I have seen of the elections I have no hope whatsoever that the Placer GOP will be able to emerge from a wet paper bag. (But – the rampage jihads against people they don’t like will continue) I won’t even ask where the Placer GOP was in this election (other than trying to unseat Kirk Uhler).
So – this makes Victor Bekhet’s 20-Point loss a massive drubbing as Out-of-the-Closet Pro-Growth Conservative Kirk Uhler decimated him despite the fact that 40% of the voters in Placer Sup D4 were dems and less than 50% of them were Republicans. OUCH.
Showing the magnitude of Uhler’s victory is the fact that Jennifer Montgomery, who is in the most Democrat Supervisor District in Placer County “Only” got 63.19% of the vote versus Uhler’s 59.81%. Perhaps Montgomery can indeed be worked with as asserted by Ken Campbell in his defense of supporting democrat turned DTS Bekhet. It would appear that a decent batch of the lefties in Placer SUP D5 may not have Monty on their dance card, suggesting she may indeed be pragmatic in some regards.
Michael Babich, who lost to Montgomery is a dyed in the wool Conservative who was recruited by the local Tea Party and aided by Team McClintock.
The local Tea Party also recruited jolly Bob Grigas to run against DTS Supervisor Jim Holmes and that margin was colossal. 75-25.
In other news – GOP Assembly Candidate Kevin Kiley won Placer County Outright. Given the massive Dem turnout surge, I’d have to believe that his “Deputy Attorney General” ballot title had to have attracted more than a few Kamala Harris supporters.
I have been receiving positive feedback that the youthful Kiley is reaching out to several prominent local electeds. This is a good thing as I’ve been told that he is meeting with the aforementioned pack of rabid dogs on Wednesday. He is sure to see why they are (as a group) ineffective (because not all of them are insane), and of course why your intrepid blogger is recommending a tetanus shot and a flak jacket for Mr. Kiley before said meeting.
Kiley has met with a few respected and popular local electeds. By accounts, it appears that he is soliciting advice and is acting on some of it. The mere fact that he is meeting with people is a stunning departure from the feckless, incompetent Beth Gaines. The fact that he is interacting and asking questions suggests that my opinion that he is talented and intelligent may have some merit.
I want Kiley to succeed. I sincerely hope he continues to meet with good, sane people. I sincerely hope he not only solicits their advice, but that he will also act on it. This alone would have a major, stabilizing effect on the whole area that has suffered from a Republican leadership Vacuum (with a few notable exceptions) – that crescendoed with the massive 15% swing in voter turnout in the primary just concluded.
If Mr. Kiley takes and acts on good advice, he will maximize his talent. If that happens, he will end up being a far better representative than the rabid dogs deserve.
The fun is just beginning, I’ve talked to a few perspective candidates and it looks like at least two major local governing bodies are going to have sufficient Republican candidates. More on those races soon.