In El Cajon, a socialist is challenging conservative incumbent Mayor Bill Wells, while three candidates compete for the open District 1 council seat left by the retirement of longtime Councilmember Gary Kendrick.
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Wells has been the mayor of El Cajon for more than 12 years. His challenger, Alexander Kraft, is a member of the Peace and Freedom Party, a socialist group formed around labor rights advocacy, anti-war activism and social justice efforts.
Though the race is technically non-partisan, the candidates fall on opposite sides of the political spectrum. While voter registration is nearly evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats, El Cajon leans slightly conservative and Republican-leaning candidates have held a majority on the council for decades.
Wells, the incumbent, was elected to city council in 2008 and has served as the city’s mayor since he was first appointed to the seat in 2013. His campaign boasts the city’s long-balanced budget with $63 million in reserve funds, alongside a fully staffed police department. In his tenure, he has also brought new businesses, hotels and entertainment to El Cajon, according to his campaign website.
He has also taken a hard stance against a variety of state-led initiatives, including pushing back on housing-first homelessness policy and leading the city to sue California over sanctuary laws.
“Public safety is my number one responsibility,” his website reads.
On the other hand, Kraft is a labor union organizer and former educator running on a “working-class socialist” platform. Born and raised in a trailer park in El Cajon, he worked on an assembly line before ultimately graduating from UC Berkeley.
According to his campaign site, he has guided social justice movements since the Second Gulf War, including organizing marches and rallies.
His campaign has garnered endorsements from the Working Families Party, the San Diego Democratic Socialists, the Green Party, and the San Diego & Imperial Counties Labor Council, SEIU 221.
“El Cajon’s multi-ethnic working class is under attack by a MAGA-controlled city government more interested in writing checks to billionaire landlords and selling out our residents to ICE than in meeting people’s needs,” his website reads.
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While both Wells and Kraft have listed homelessness as pivotal issues to their campaigns, their approaches to the complex issue vary significantly. Wells touts the city’s longtime encampment clearing efforts and has long pushed for a treatment-first approach to the homelessness crisis.
On the other hand, Kraft led protests against a city ban on feeding individuals in public parks. He wants to launch a city-wide community response team to de-escalate mental health crises and audit the police budget to fund community needs.
Filings show Wells had $13,715 on hand as of June 30, while Kraft had an ending cash balance of $6,701 as of June 30.
The remaining seat up for election on Nov. 3 is District One, which was left open by the retirement of longtime Councilmember Gary Kendrick. Kendrick was a longstanding member of the Republican party before renouncing the group and registering as a Democrat.
The filing deadline for candidates to submit statements of interest was extended because Kendrick withdrew his candidacy near the end of the filing period. There are three candidates running for the seat: Chuck Kaye, a Republican; Patrick Grillot, a Democrat; and Osama Bayati, whose party affiliation is unclear.
A lifelong Republican and career law enforcement officer, Kaye has the support of the Republican Party of San Diego County. He is dedicated to public safety, lowering taxes and creating a family-friendly city, according to his website.
Grillot is endorsed by the San Diego County Democratic Party and has served on the city’s oversight committee for funding of new fire stations and police facilities. According to his campaign, he is committed to bringing a fresh perspective to the city council — with a focus on safer neighborhoods, economic development, lowered costs and addressing homelessness.
Bayati’s priorities include youth success, establishing term limits and streamlining success for small businesses. His campaign opposes the “unnecessary expansion” of Flock Safety license-plate reader cameras.
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