City Council races in San Diego could be impacted by recent labor union endorsements, including District 2 candidate Nicole Crosby getting nods from the region’s largest labor organization and the city’s largest union.
The city union, the Municipal Employees Association, also endorsed Gerardo Ramirez in the race for South Bay District 8, which includes Logan Heights, Otay Mesa and San Ysidro.
Crosby, who is seeking to replace termed-out Jennifer Campbell in a district that includes Point Loma and Clairemont, was endorsed last week by the San Diego-Imperial Counties Labor Council, an umbrella organization for more than 100 local unions.
“Nicole is a champion for working families,” said Brigette Browning, labor council president. “She will fight for fair wages, safe working conditions and ensure that all San Diegans are treated with dignity and respect.”
Crosby, a deputy city attorney, was also endorsed by MEA, which represents 5,400 mostly white-collar city workers.
“Nicole has been working side by side with our members for over a decade,” said Michael Zucchet, MEA general manager. “She understands the city’s staffing needs and how to work towards a balanced budget that makes sense for San Diegans and city workers.”
Crosby has also been endorsed by the county Democratic Party, which could matter in a district where registered Democrats outnumber registered Republicans by about 42,000 to 24,000.
Ramirez serves as chief of staff to District 8’s current council representative – termed-out Vivian Moreno – and lives in Otay Mesa.
“Gerardo understands the city and knows what’s working and what’s not working,” Zucchet said in explaining why MEA chose Ramirez over three other Democrats in the race.
Zucchet said it’s also appealing that Ramirez, 31, could represent the first of a new generation of San Diego leaders.
He is facing Venus Molina, Campbell’s chief of staff, San Ysidro school trustee Antonio Martinez and Rafael Perez, a local real estate agency and college instructor.
In District 2, Crosby is facing six opponents: Josh Coyne, Mandy Havlik, Richard Bailey, Mike Rickey, Jacob Mitchell and Paul Suppa.
In both races, the top two finishers in the June 2 primary will move on to a November runoff – even if the first-place finisher in June gets more than 50% of the vote.