The 2024 San Diego County Board of Supervisors election was held on Tuesday, November 5, 2024, to elect members of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors.
Three of the five seats on the board were up for election, with all three incumbents winning re-election. The election resulted in the continuation of a 3-2 Democratic majority. However, after the election, Chair Nora Vargas announced that she would not take the oath of office for a second term, leaving the board with a 2-2 stalemate.[1][2] A special election will be held in 2025 to fill the vacancy.[3]
Municipal elections in California are officially non-partisan, and although most candidates do identify a party preference, their party affiliations do not appear on the ballot. A two-round system is used for the elections, starting with primaries in March followed by runoff elections in November between the top-two candidates in each race.
Background
Seats on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors in districts 1, 2, and 3 were up for election. Incumbents Nora Vargas, Joel Anderson, and Terra Lawson-Remer ran for re-election.
Top election issues included homelessness, immigration enforcement, and housing affordability, part of a broader housing crisis statewide.[4]
Incumbent Nora Vargas, a Democrat, and Alejandro Galicia, a Republican, automatically advanced from the March 2024 primary, since no other candidates qualified to run. Vargas went on to defeat Galicia 62.5% to 37.5% in the November general election.[5]
2024 San Diego County Board of Supervisors District 1 election[6]
Incumbent Joel Anderson, a Republican, and Gina Jacobs, a Democrat, automatically advanced from the March 2024 primary, since no other candidates qualified to run. Anderson went on to defeat Jacobs 59.8% to 40.2% in the November general election.[8]
2024 San Diego County Board of Supervisors District 2 election[6]
Incumbent Terra Lawson-Remer, a Democrat, and former mayor of San Diego Kevin Faulconer, a Republican, automatically advanced from the March 2024 primary, since no other candidates qualified to run. Lawson-Remer went on to defeat Faulconer 57.0% to 43.0% in the November general election.[9]
2024 San Diego County Board of Supervisors District 3 election[6]
Candidate
Votes
%
Terra Lawson-Remer (incumbent)
178,781
56.98%
Kevin Faulconer
134,991
43.02%
Total votes
313,772
100.0%
Post-election
After the election, Chair Nora Vargas announced that she would not take the oath of office for a second term, citing "personal safety and security reasons."[1][2] Vice chair Terra Lawson-Remer became acting chair of the board, and on January 14, 2025, the board voted to hold a special election to fill the vacancy left by Vargas' resignation.[3][10]
