The race for the pivotal 3rd District seat on the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors has been finalized with the close of the candidate-filing period Wednesday.

The five people who will appear on the June 3 primary ballot are: Dr. David Bearman of Goleta; former Santa Barbara County Planning Commissioner Doreen Farr of Solvang; businessman Steve Pappas of Los Olivos; Buellton City Councilwoman Victoria Pointer; and former Santa Barbara County Planning Commissioner and Solvang ex-Mayor David Smyser.

Since incumbent Brooks Firestone is not seeking re-election, the candidate-filing period for his seat was extended until Wednesday.

The 3rd District - which includes western Goleta, Isla Vista, UCSB and the Santa Ynez Valley - is seen by many as a key seat because it can swing the power of the board to either the North County, as Firestone has done for the past four years, or to the South Coast, as has happened in the past.

The candidate-filing period closed last week for the other two supervisorial seats that are also on the June ballot.

In the 4th District, which includes Lompoc, Guadalupe and Orcutt, incumbent Joni Gray has filed for re-election. Challenging her is fellow Lompoc resident and former Santa Maria Police Chief John Sterling.

First District Supervisor Salud Carbajal was the only person to file for candidacy in that race. He runs for re-election unopposed to represent the district that includes Montecito, Carpinteria, Mission Canyon and parts of the city of Santa Barbara.

Advertisement

Six seats are up for five Santa Barbara Superior Court judges plus the seat left vacant by the 2006 removal of Judge Diana Hall.

Judges Brian Hill, Frank Ochoa, Joseph Lodge, Edward Bullard and Thomas Adams all filed for their seats and are running unopposed.

Four attorneys - Jed Beebe, Lynn Cutler, John Mackinnon and Kevin Ready - are running for Hall's former seat.

In each race, if no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote on June 3, the top two vote-getters will move on to a runoff in the Nov. 4 general election.

Candidates will face off at luncheon March 19 in Buellton.

Five residents of the 3rd Supervisorial District who have indicated their intent to run for the office are scheduled to attend a luncheon debate hosted by the Committee to Improve North County. The potential candidates include Dr. David Bearman, Doreen Farr, Steve Pappas, Victoria Pointer and David Smyser.

The luncheon is slated for March 19 at Pea Soup Andersen's, 376 Avenue of the Flags, in Buellton. The event, sponsored by Committee INC and co-sponsored by the Santa Maria Times and Lompoc Record, is expected to begin at 11:45 a.m., and reservations are required. The cost is $18. To reserve a seat, call 922-4881 by March 14.

Malia Spencer can be reached at 739-2219 or mspencer@santa mariatimes.com.

March 13, 2008