Mullin takes top spot

Mattammal, the only Republican in the race, trailed with 16% and Beach, a Burlingame Councilmember had 14%.

“I’m thrilled with the results but understand this is just one night and we’ve got a long way to go until November,” Mulin said of the early results. “It’s indicative of the fact that I’ve represented many of these people voting in the congressional district in the Assembly in the last decade.”

Mullin led the pack for much of the race, gaining the endorsement of Speier, the state Democratic party and a broad assortment of leaders in the county. Canepa, who’s billed himself as the non-establishment candidate, led in fundraising early on but failed to keep up the momentum as Mullin outpaced him with nearly double the cash on hand as of Tuesday.

The 15th District replaces the outgoing 14th District, redrawn to encompass the eastern Peninsula from Redwood City up to South San Francisco plus Daly City.

Mullin was elected to the Assembly in 2012 and has served as the speaker pro tem since 2014. Prior to that, he served on the South San Francisco City Council for five years. A South San Francisco native, he is the son of the late Gene Mullin, a former South San Francisco mayor and assemblymember.

Canepa, meanwhile, was elected to the Board of Supervisors in 2016, and previously served on the Daly City Council. He expressed surprise Tuesday over his lead on Mattammal and Beach.

“Historically in San Mateo County, usually it’s not two Democrats,” he said. “In the last couple weeks, we thought we were going to come in third or fourth place, truly … we’ll see what happens in November but keep your seat belts on.”

He further called on Mullin to not accept PAC money, alleging Mullin’s campaign had been heavily funded by the pharmaceutical industry. Earlier in his campaign Canepa claimed Mullin had misused state campaign funds to boost his congressional bid.

Mullin, on the other hand, said he was not surprised to be running against another Democrat given the district. He said being the sole California Democratic Party endorsed candidate and the sole Labor Federation endorsed candidate would give him a “structural advantage.”

“I think it’s clear that we are the front-runners for the general election and looking forward to campaigning hard,” he said.

Mullin made democratic protections and boosting voter participation a key part of his campaign, advocating for measures like universal vote-by-mail ballots. He’s also voiced his super for Medicare for All, the Green New Deal and for forgiving student loan debt.

Canepa has advocated for similar policies. He’s shared his concern for wealth inequality in the district and said he would be a strong voice against conservatives in the house.

To the south, U.S. Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Palo Alto, will likely face Rishi Kumar in her reelection bid, beating out several challenges for the newly drawn 16th district, which covers the Peninsula coast from Pascedero to Pacifica plus Palo Alto, Saratoga and a sliver of San Jose.

Eshoo, who has represented the district since 1992, had gained more than 51% of the vote as of Tuesday night and Kumar had 15.4%. Kumar, a Democrat running on a fiscally moderate platform, challenged Eshoo in 2020 when he also advanced to the general election where he received 36% of the vote. He was elected to the Saratoga City Council in 2014, and is currently serving his second term there.

Election results included in Tuesday night’s tally include mailed ballots before Thursday, June 2, and vote center ballots from Election Day. The post-election results releases will be at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 9; Friday, June 17; Monday, June 13; Tuesday, June 21; Wednesday, June 15; Thursday, June 23. The final results will be available Thursday, July 7.

corey@smdailyjournal.com

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