After filing closes candidates list finalized for Antioch city, school board races
Three each vie for mayor, treasurer, council District 3, two each for council District 2, Trustee Areas 3 and 4, only one each for clerk, Trustee Area 1
By Allen D. Payton
With filing closing for some races last Friday and the rest yesterday, Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024, the list of candidates for Antioch mayor, city treasurer, clerk and council, and school board has been finalized. There are three candidates each for mayor, city treasurer and council District 3, two for District 2, and only one for city clerk. In the races for school board there are two candidates each in Areas 3 and 4, including the incumbent, and no one running in Area 1 against incumbent and current school board president, Antonio Hernandez.
Following is based on information provided by the City Clerk and the Contra Costa Elections Division:
Mayor
In the race for mayor, second-time candidate Rakesh Christian, who is listed as a Community Volunteer and placed fifth out of five in the 2020 race, was the first to file, on July 23rd, to run against incumbent, Lamar Hernández-Thorpe, who is running for a second term and listed simply as Mayor. He was the last to file on Friday, after challenger and former city manager Ron Bernal, listed as a Business Consultant and is a first-time candidate, filed the day before. (See related articles here, here, here and here)
City Treasurer
In the race for city treasurer, former Mayor, Councilman and appointed City Treasurer, Jim Davis, whose ballot designation is listed as Educator and Instructor Trainer and lost his election in 2022 to incumbent Lauren Posada by just 15 votes, will take on current District 3 Councilwoman Lori Ogorchock who is a real estate agent and listed as a Small Businessperson and can’t run for re-election (See Council District 3 below). They both face newcomer Jorge R. Rojas, Jr., listed as a Chief Financial Officer. But no company showing him in that position could be found through an internet search. An effort to reach him was unsuccessful prior to publication time. (See related articles here, here, here, here and here)
City Clerk
The only candidate to file for city clerk to replace incumbent Ellie Householder who chose to not run for re-election, is
Melissa Rhodes who is listed as a Deputy City Clerk. According to Transparent California, she held that position in Martinez in 2018, 2019 and 2020 and in San Pablo in 2020 and 2021. She faces no opponent unless someone enters the race and runs as a write-in candidate.
Council District 2
Although four people pulled papers to run for the District 2 City Council seat, only two filed. Retired Antioch High School Principal Louie Rocha will face Dominique King, who is listed as a Businesswoman, Educator and Consultant, and ran unsuccessfully against Rocha’s mother Mary, for the Antioch School Board in Trustee Area 5 in 2022. Jose Aceves-Guzman pulled papers on July 15th and Haque N. Khan pulled papers on Tuesday, but neither filed them. (See related articles here, here, here, here and here)
Council District 3
Three candidates will face off for the open District 3 Council seat left vacant due to Ogorchock being gerrymandered into District 4 by the council majority during the redistricting process in 2022. Former Mayor, Councilman and Contra Costa Water Board Director Donald “Don” Freitas, listed as a Community Volunteer, will face second-time candidate Antwon Ramon Webster, listed as Chief of Logistics. He works for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. They will both face newcomer and first-time candidate, Addison Peterson, who is listed as a California Policy Manager.
(See related articles, here, here and here)
School Board
Trustee Area 1
As mentioned, incumbent Antonio Hernandez will face no opposition in the race for Area 1 Trustee, as he seeks his second term on the Antioch School Board. That is unless someone files to run as a write-in candidate. (See related article)
Trustee Area 3
With incumbent Trustee Dr. Clyde Lewis not seeking re-election, two candidates filed for run for the Area 3 seat on the board. They are Dee Brown, listed as an Educational Program Director, and Scott Bergerhouse, listed as a Retired School Administrator. He is the former co-principal for Deer Valley High School, former principal for Dozier-Libbey Medical High School, as well as administrator for other schools in the district, and former Director of Student Support Services for the Antioch Unified School District. (See related articles here and here)
Trustee Area 4
In the race for Area 4 Trustee, incumbent Gary Hack, listed simply as Incumbent, is running for his fourth term on the board, having been elected in 2010, then lost in 2014, elected again in 2016 and re-elected in 2020. He will face challenger Olga Cobos-Smith, listed as a Pediatric Nurse and Entrepreneur. (See related articles here and here)
Write-In Candidates
According to the Contra Costa County General Election Candidate Guide for November 5, 2024, Any person interested in filing as a write-in candidate may file for office between September 9 and October 22, 2024. Any person who desires to be a write-in candidate and have any votes cast for them reported shall file a Statement of Write-In Candidacy. Forms are available at the Elections Office between the following dates: Write-In Filing Period: September 9 – October 22, 2024. They must file the same forms required of other candidates who have filed during the regular filing period.
Cities, East Bay Regional Park District, East Bay Municipal Utility District, Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District, and San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District require nomination signatures to be collected for a valid write-in candidacy. Signers of nomination papers for write-in candidates shall be voters in the political subdivision in which the candidate is to be voted on.
For more details see page 13 of the Guide.
Read more details later on each of the candidates in the various contested races in future articles. The election is November 5th.
Please check back later for any updates to this report.
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