Tight race since Election Day, Fresno City Council District 6 race still too close to call
Nick Richardson and Roger Bonakdar remain in a close contest for the Fresno City Council District 6 seat representing northeast Fresno, separated by 599 votes out of more than 27,000 votes counted so far.
Richardson, a business owner and Marine Corps Reserve officer, had 14,037 votes, or 51%, by Tuesday evening, compared to Bonakdar, a local attorney, who had amassed 13,438 votes, or 48.8%.
The Fresno County Clerk/Registrar of Voters reports that there remain about 49,000 ballots to be counted.
Both Bonakdar and Richardson are first-time candidates running to replace term-limited City Councilmember Garry Bredefeld, who is wrapping up his second four-year term.
Bredefeld was barred by term limits from seeking a third four-year term. Instead, Bredefeld opted to run for the District 2 seat on the Fresno County Board of Supervisors against incumbent Supervisor Steve Brandau. Bredefeld did not endorse a candidate in the race to replace him.
Both Richardson and Bonakdar listed public safety, homelessness and business support among their priorities.
Although City Council seats are nonpartisan positions in Fresno, District 6 leans Republican in voter registration. Of more than 49,000 registered voters, 41.4% are Republicans, and have an advantage of 9.1 percentage points over Democrats. Nearly one in five voters in District 6 are registered with no party preference.
Still, there was wrangling during the campaign over an endorsement from the Fresno County Republican Party.
Bonakdar had been registered as a no-party-preference voter but switched his registration to Republican after the March primary, while Richardson has been a registered Republican voter since he reached voting age. But in August, the local Republican group endorsed Bonakdar after initially endorsing both candidates.
This story was originally published November 12, 2024 at 6:07 PM.
