A month later, the ballots are almost counted

Emeryville councilmember faces censure hearing; If timed, Oakland could have a consolidated mayoral/District 2 council special election in April; Fremont to spend additional $1.8m on police force

COUNTY NEWS

REGISTRAR OF VOTERS

—FINAL COUNT NEAR—Nearly one month since the first ballots were counted on Nov. 5, the vote count in Alameda County may conclude later today. The Alameda County Registrar of Voters is expected to post its first election update since Nov. 20.

—Just 4,865 ballots remain uncounted, but this final batch is entirely made up of ballots that contain various types of errors. Some may be unsigned or the signature does not match what is on file at the registrar’s office.

—Tracking down and cajoling the owners of these uncured ballots is an exhaustive exercise that often does not get resolved. It’s not known how many uncured ballots remain in each city and jurisdiction.

—Here’s a brief recap of where Election 2024 stands:

• Voter turnout in Alameda County sits at 71 percent, a number that is underperforming when compared to other large counties in the state. If it stands, it will be the lowest turnout in a presidential election in Alameda County since 1996.

• Three races remain too close to call:

  • In Newark, Jacinta Arteaga leads Julie Del Catancio by four votes for the second at-large seat on the Newark City Council.

  • In Fremont, Raymond Liu leads Fremont Councilmember Teresa Cox by 36 votes in the District 6 council race.

  • Also in Fremont, Rinu Nair leads Ganesh Balamitran by 31 votes in the race for the open Fremont school board seat in Area 4.

• At the presidential level, Donald Trump continues a trends seen across the country. He exceeded expectations even in deep blue Alameda County by gaining 21 percent of the vote.

• In addition, Republican U.S. Senate candidate Steve Garvey outperformed Trump in Alameda County, registering more than 23 percent in both the full-term and unexpired senate races.

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