As of late Tuesday night, Dan Arriola appears to have a wide margin ahead of his opponents in the race to replace outgoing Tracy Mayor Nancy Young, while Steve Abercrombie, Dotty Nygard and Mateo Bedolla lead the race for two City Council seats.
Arriola showed a healthy lead with 48.7% of the vote in the mayor’s race, followed by mayor pro tempore Eleassia Davis who garnered 29.7%. Former councilmember Mary Mitracos closely trailed with 21.6%.
Arriola is currently serving as a deputy district attorney in San Joaquin County. Endorsed by the current mayor, he supports ValleyLink, a proposed 26-mile commuter rail service that would connect to BART. Davis is a U.S. Army veteran who served on the council for a full term. She has the endorsement of San Joaquin County Supervisor and former Tracy mayor Robert Rickman.
In lead for one of two city council seats was Abercrombie, president of the Tracy Unified School District board, with 21.5% of the vote. Tracy’s Police Department’s DARE officer, Abercrombie also served on the Tracy City Council from 2006 to 2012.
With 13.8% of the vote, Nygard may be headed for the council’s second seat. The former emergency room nurse now heads a nonprofit that promotes sustainable business practices. She was instrumental in the Sustainability Commission that addresses citywide efforts to cut air pollution and address traffic congestion, which has been a concern with an increase in warehouse trucking.
Incumbent councilmember and public school teacher Bedolla held 12.6% of the vote, followed closely by former Super Bowl champion Guy McIntyre with 12.4%.
The enthusiasm for new public officials may reflect a desire for change in Tracy, a city mired in political turmoil. A San Joaquin County Civil Grand Jury report published in June said Tracy has been plagued with a council that cannot form a civil, cohesive governing body willing to set aside differences and personal agendas for the benefit of city residents. The report echoed similar findings in a 2018-2019 report.