Supervisor races headed to runoff

In a subdued primary election Tuesday featuring a very low turnout, two Kings County supervisors seats are headed for a runoff. In District 2, which includes Corcoran, Avenal and Kettleman City, former Nicole Parra staffer Richard Valle will face second-place finisher Terry Kwast in a runoff election in November.

Neither reached the magic number -- 50 percent -- required to win outright. Valle had 643 votes, while Kwast garnered 597.

"The work was definitely put in as far as the door-to-door. It was great to see the fruit of that labor in the numbers," Valle said.

Kwast said he had hoped that somebody would get 50 percent and end it. He said that campaigning is "not all the fun it's cracked up to be."

Kwast said he thought Valle "did a better job" of getting people registered and helping supporters to vote absentee.

"It's whoever can work to get their voters out who's going to make the difference," he said.

In District 5, which includes east Hanford and Home Garden, Alene Taylor got 43 percent of the vote, compared to 30 percent for second-place finisher Richard Fagundes.

Andrew Mattos, the longtime Kings County employee who mounted an energetic effort, fell short with 26 percent.

"I was a little surprised. I really would have thought Mattos would have done better. I thought he worked harder than Mr. Fagundes did," Taylor said.

Taylor, now in her 12th year in the seat, said she wasn't surprised that she outpaced the rest of the field.

"I think people appreciate the job that I do," she said.

In the contest for Dept. 2 Superior Court judge, it was a runaway victory for incumbent James LaPorte, who was appointed in 2005.

LaPorte's challenger was Greg Strickland, a former Kings County district attorney.

LaPorte tallied 74 percent of the vote compared to Strickland's 25 percent.

"I think the magnitude of the victory was because of the efforts of my campaign committee and all the volunteers," LaPorte said.

LaPorte said that Strickland ran a "dignified campaign."

The state and national primaries on the ballot went uncontested.

Democrat Fran Florez and Republican Danny Gilmore will face each other in Assembly District 30 in November.

Jim Costa, D-Fresno, and Republican challenger Jim Lopez will face off in the 20th congressional district.

The reporter can be reached at 583-2432.

(June 4, 2008)