Igor Tregub, chair of the Alameda County Democratic Party, has declared victory for the downtown Berkeley City Council seat after receiving a slim majority of ranked-choice ballots in a special election last month.
Since election day May 28, Tregub has maintained a narrow lead over runner-up Ruben Hernandez Story, who serves as chief of staff for current Berkeley City Councilmember Terry Taplin.
As of the Tuesday update from the Alameda County Registrar of Voters, Tregub eked out just 48 more votes than Hernandez Story after ranked-choice rounds eliminated the other two candidates.
Just over 30 percent of ballots were returned from voters in District 4, which represents much of downtown and some of Central Berkeley. Not all votes have been counted yet, and it is unclear how many remain. But Tregub said that despite the closeness of the race, he could confidently declare victory based on the votes that have been tallied.
“Smarter people than me have projected that it would take significantly more votes in order for the result to change, and I’m not sure how many votes are outstanding, but it’s unlikely that the votes that are will change the result,” Tregub said.
Tregub also took to X, formerly known as Twitter, on Tuesday evening to thank voters for granting him the “tremendous victory.”
Hernandez Story conceded on X the same night.
“While we are still awaiting some ballots and final certified results from the county, and although only a few votes separate us from first place, it seems unlikely that our campaign will move forward,” Hernandez Story wrote.
Four self-described progressives were vying for the City Council seat vacated by Kate Harrison, who suddenly resigned in the middle of a council meeting earlier this year. She remains in the running for Berkeley mayor, a seat that is also up for grabs as current Mayor Jesse Arreguin seeks a spot in the state Senate.
Results for the District 4 special election will be certified June 20.
