Incumbent Joni Gray coasted to an easy victory Tuesday night in her bid for re-election to the 4th District supervisor seat in Santa Barbara County.

With the final precincts reporting just before midnight, the unofficial totals showed Gray ahead with 57.4 percent of the vote, compared to 42.3 percent for challenger John Sterling, former police chief in Santa Maria.

Gray said she was “delighted” with the outcome, and thankful for the team of people who helped in her re-election.

“The people and the sense of community have been wonderful,” Gray said.

Gray touted her experience — nearly 10 years in office — in arguing for another term, while Sterling told voters it was time for change.

The 4th District includes Lompoc, Guadalupe and the unincorporated communities of Orcutt, Mission Hills, Mesa Oaks and Casmalia.

Gray has held the supervisor post for nearly 10 years after being appointed to the position by former Gov. Gray Davis in 1998, and has been involved in public service since she taught at Santa Maria High School in 1964.

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Gray, 65, campaigned for re-election on her years of experience. Rebutting criticism that she had not listened to her constituents or had not done enough, Gray has used the last few months to remind voters of her accomplishments in office.

During her tenure, Gray said, the county’s budget reserves increased from $3 million to $33 million, the county planning and development department became more user-friendly, and she opened an office in Orcutt, among other accomplishments. She said she will continue what has worked for the last 10 years.

By late evening, with many precincts still to be counted, Sterling said he was not ready to reach a conclusion.

“I’m not doing anything, I’m not saying anything and I’m not going anywhere until this is done,” Sterling said from his office in Lompoc.

Sterling, 57, is a registered Republican and said his greatest asset in this election was that he offered a fresh start after Gray’s 10-year run.

Sterling was born and raised in Lompoc and has 24 years of public service experience — first as a lieutenant with the Oakland Police Department, then as police chief of Ridgecrest, where he also spent a year as the interim city manager.

He maintained throughout his campaign that he would not make the $8.4 million in cuts to the county’s adult mental health budget, but would first scrutinize the salaries of the top-paid administrators.

In commenting on her victory, Gray took aim at one of her critics.

“I was very disappointed that my newspaper, the Santa Maria Times, was so out of touch with the community (when they endorsed John Sterling),” Gray said over the phone from the Embassy Suites in Lompoc. “I was shocked, but it’s a small part of the campaign and the big picture is that Lompoc, Orcutt and Guadalupe worked together as a team to represent the 4th District.”

Gray’s third four-year term will begin in January.

Sam Womack can be reached at 739-2218 or swomack@santa mariatimes.com.