Ellis declares victory in District 32 Assembly race
Bakersfield Republican Stan Ellis declared victory Wednesday in Tuesday's special primary election for California's 32nd Assembly District even as results have yet to be certified.
Ellis has won 32,337 votes, or 63.9%, and under California law, a candidate who receives more than 50% of the vote in a primary election is automatically awarded the seat without holding a subsequent general election.
Additional mail-in and provisional ballots will continue to be counted until March 6, when the election is certified.
When he last spoke with The Californian Tuesday evening following the preliminary results, Ellis was optimistic but said he "didn't want to count his chickens before they hatched."
Asked what changed overnight to lead him to declare victory, Ellis said, "I don't know. I'm just so honored I can't see straight."
Ellis said "someone from Sacramento" reached out to him to discuss a swearing-in date, but could not recall a name or department, saying it was a very brief call.
While Ellis holds a commanding lead in the race, the second-place candidate — Democrat Chris Cruz-Boone — said the democratic process must run its course.
"I respect Mr. Ellis' enthusiasm, but regardless of the outcome, we must all remain patient and united in our commitment to our community and the integrity of our electoral system," Cruz-Boone said Wednesday in a text message.
Cruz-Boone serves as a trustee on the Bakersfield City School District Board of Trustees and was in a meeting Tuesday as results came in, making her unavailable for comment then.
On Wednesday, she said she and her family brainstormed ideas about how to use her campaign to serve others.
"My son encouraged me to join the advisory board for (3G Activities), and my daughter led art projects throughout our community," Cruz-Boone said. "I am so proud that my whole family embraced this campaign as an opportunity to find new ways to show our love for our community."
Cruz-Boone said she would have liked to debate her opponents, and she believed it would have been valuable to the voters and the democratic process.
According to updated results from the Secretary of State's office, Cruz-Boone received 14,741 votes, or 29.1%; Republican Holli Willibey received 2,306 votes, or 4.6%; and Libertarian William Brown 1,191 votes, or 2.4%.
Ellis was not the only one to call the race in his favor. In a news release Tuesday night, California Republican Party chairwoman Jessica Millan Patterson congratulated Ellis.
"Assemblyman-elect Ellis will be a staunch advocate for the needs of the Central Valley when he reports to Sacramento," Millan Patterson said. His ability to evaluate and tackle complex issues is going to be an asset as he joins the Assembly Republican Caucus."
According to the Secretary of State's office, Ellis is the top fundraising candidate for 2025, raising $278,150 from 125 contributions.
According to financial filings, Ellis' largest donation was $75,000 from himself, with the second largest donation of $11,800 coming from California Real Estate Political Action Committee of the California Association of Realtors.
As of Feb. 13, Ellis' campaign spent $155,744 between Jan. 1 and Feb. 8, and had $137,519 in ending cash.
Campaign finance information for the other three candidates was not immediately available.
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