Huge upset in Fresno council race evokes name from city’s political past | Opinion
People like me – by that I mean journalists who’ve written about politics and sports – have a certain disease.
It’s not enough to declare that some candidate or team defeated another in a huge upset. We feel compelled to declare it was the hugest upset since whenever the last time the outcome of an election or game merited such a label.
Which brings us to Nick Richardson, who is on the verge of pulling off one of the biggest stunners in the recent history of Fresno politics.
It also brings us, in a roundabout way, to Brian Setencich. A name that should be familiar but has long since evaporated from the landscape.
Despite being out-fundraised by his opponent 8-to-1 and outflanked by prominent endorsements, Richardson’s victory in Fresno City Council District 6 race appears secure. The marine reservist’s lead over attorney Roger Bonakdar swelled to 954 votes and three percentage points (51.50% to 48.50%) following Wednesday’s update by the Fresno County Clerk/Registrar of Voters, and there aren’t enough remaining uncounted ballots to shift the outcome.
Since the election I asked two people who’ve been involved with Fresno elections for decades for the last comparable city council upset. The reply both times was Setencich, who as a 29-year-old political unknown stunned well-funded incumbent Craig Scharton (another familiar name) to represent District 3 in the early 1990s.
Setencich’s political career was as remarkable as it was peculiar. Following one council term, the Republican in 1994 became the first Fresno council member to be elected to the California State Assembly and, in an even more astonishing turn of events, became the first freshman legislator in more than a century to serve as Speaker.
The more I discovered about Setencich, the more he and the 32-year-old Richardson seemed to have similar stories. Both are conservative Republicans and complete outsiders to local politics who relied on grassroots campaigns to defeat better-funded, heavily favored opponents.
They also have European basketball in common in that Setencich played pro basketball overseas (after starring at Fresno High and Cal State Bakersfield) while Richardson’s father coached pro hoops in Germany.
“I’m interested to learn more about him,” Setencich said when reached by phone. He lives in Fresno and works in property management. “It’s great whenever someone enters politics with a clear and completely fresh way of looking at things.”
Setencich’s political career lasted only six years. The deal he brokered with Assembly Democrats that made him Speaker angered fellow Republicans, who foiled his re-election campaign in 1996. He never ran for office again.
It’s way too soon to predict what happens to Richardson. Only that his tenure in local politics is off to a remarkable start.
Two views of Costa’s win
There are two ways to look at Jim Costa’s somewhat slim victory (52.5% to 47.5% in the latest count) over two-time challenger Michael Maher in Congressional District 21.
In an election where Fresno County voted for a Republican presidential candidate for the first time since 2004, Costa managed to sidestep the red wave and hang on to his seat. The moderate Democrat is now angling to become Ranking Member of the House Agricultural Committee.
On the other hand, Maher sliced his deficit to Costa nearly in half compared to their 2022 race – even though new district boundaries (where Democrats hold a +14 registration edge) gave Costa a more friendly playing field.
Costa, who has represented Fresno-area voters in either Washington, D.C., or Sacramento since 1978, will be 74 years old during the next election cycle. But the only “r” word he seems to know is reelection.
Young Republican faces
By contrast, Fresno County’s enclave in the State Legislature will have a more youthful look following the victories of David Tangipa and Alexandra Macedo in Assembly Districts 8 and 33, respectively. (Both districts include other counties, too.)
Tangipa, 29, and Macedo, 30, are among the new faces of the Republican party. But with Democrats enjoying super majorities in both houses, it’ll be interesting to see how young energy collides with political reality.
Election turnout slump
So much for theories and predictions that Fresno County voters would participate en masse during this election, perhaps even surpass the 74.65% mark from 2020.
Instead, only 63.87% of the countywide electorate returned their ballots, putting us on course for the lowest turnout since 2012 (63.79%) and the second-lowest this century.
Besides ranking below the statewide average (71.2%), Fresno County also trails fellow central San Joaquin Valley counties Madera (70.6%), Tulare (63.8%), Kings (65%) and Merced (66%).
Significant ‘undervotes’
While some registered voters don’t bother voting at all, others return ballots with certain races or measures left blank.
For example, 36,845 northeast Fresno residents who reside in District 6 voted in the election but only 31,828 chose either Richardson or Bonakdar to represent them at City Hall.
Considering Richardson’s current margin of 954 votes, those 5,012 “undervotes” may have decided the race. (If you’re wondering about the math, it’s because seven people voted for both candidates.)
Election snafus
The recent admission by Fresno County Clerk/Registrar of Voters James Kuss that 11 voters in northwest Fresno were sent incorrect ballots due to problems with the department’s GIS system – on top of the ballot box key snafu at Harlan Ranch – doesn’t exactly engender confidence.
Small mistakes happen, yes. But they cannot be tolerated and never repeated.
