Assemblywoman Laura Friedman leads the race to succeed Rep. Adam Schiff in the predominantly Democratic 30th Congressional District, according to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk.
As of Friday’s count, Friedman, a Democrat, had earned 28.9% of the vote. Also likely to progress to the runoff is Republican Alex Balekian, a Glendale resident who works as an intensive care physician, who earned 18.9% of the vote.
“We are extremely happy with our showing and the trust and confidence the voters of the 30th Congressional District have placed in me,” Friedman told the News-Press on Tuesday’s election night event. “It remains to be seen who my opponent will be in November. The Republican candidate, Alex Balekian, has a substantial lead and I look forward to discussing our profound policy differences on the campaign trail.”
Before joining the state Assembly in 2017, Friedman served on Glendale’s City Council for nearly eight years and served as mayor in 2011.
State Sen. Anthony Portantino, a Democrat, came in third with 13.7%.
Schiff, a Democrat from Burbank, was leading in the primary for the U.S. Senate seat previously held since 1992 by Dianne Feinstein, who died in office in September. He did not make an endorsement for his replacement in the House of Representatives.
The 30th Congressional District stretches from West Hollywood to the Angeles National Forest.
Based on the vote tallies as of Friday, Burbank Mayor Nick Schultz, a Democrat, and Republican Tony Rodriguez will advance to a runoff in the race to replace Friedman in the 44th Assembly District — earning 26.7% and 27.5% of the vote, respectively. Friedman endorsed Schultz to succeed her.
“There’s certainly no victory or defeat to be clear as of yet, but I am just absolutely humbled and grateful with all the support we’ve gotten,” Schultz told the News-Press on Tuesday. “There’s an opportunity here to lead at the state level and [address] all the issues I care about such as homelessness, climate resiliency, housing and transportation.”
Glendale City Councilwoman Elen Asatryan also made a bid for the Assembly seat, earning 13.7% of the vote.
COUNTY SUPERVISOR
As of Thursday evening, vote counts reveal Los Angeles County 5th District Supervisor Kathryn Barger will likely be preparing for her third and final term after besting four challengers in Tuesday’s election.
Challengers included Assemblyman Chris Holden of Pasadena and Burbank Councilman Konstantine Anthony.
With a majority lead of 58.7%, Barger will not face a runoff unless updated vote counts result in significant changes.
District 5 covers more than 90 communities, including the cities of Glendale, Burbank and La Cañada Flintridge.
Barger is the only Republican on the nonpartisan board.
“I am proud of my work and progress on challenging the status quo on homelessness, funding more law enforcement patrols to fight crime, and expanding care for our communities — but there is more to be done,” Barger said in a statement when launching her reelection campaign last year.
The Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk is scheduled to certify election results on March 29. Statewide results will be certified by April 12.
— City News Service contributed to this report.
First published in the March 9 issue of the Glendale News-Press
