Friday, November 9, 2012

San Diego Port Commissioner Leads Congressional Race Vote

With absentee and provisional ballots still remaining to be counted, Scott Peters, one of seven members of the San Diego Board of Port Commissioners, is leading the race to represent California’s 52nd Congressional District in the US House of Representatives.

According to San Diego County election officials, Peters, a Democrat, won 50.1 percent of the Election Day vote over the incumbent, Republican Brian Bilbray, but there are still more than 100,000 absentee and provisional ballots left to go through.

The 52nd District includes north and eastern portions of San Diego County, but not the Port of San Diego.

Peters has been a member of the port commission since January 2009 after being appointed by then-Mayor Jerry Sanders. He served a one-year stint as board chair in 2011, during which the port reduced its number of departments and number of employees to save money and streamline service.

If Peters is confirmed as the winner of the Congressional race, it would be up to San Diego’s mayor to appoint his replacement to the port board.

Prior to joining the port board, Peters spent eight years on the San Diego City Council, from 2000-2008, and was Council President from 2006 through 2008.