Though overshadowed by the major proposition battles, the Nov. 8 election also featured a number of local city council and school board contests in California. In the San Gabriel Valley, an area that only ten years ago was heavily Republican, but that has become increasingly progressive, one of the major ideological battlegrounds was
the Pasadena Community College Board.
Conservatives had sought to defeat Arcadia-based progressive board member Beth Wells-Miller in order to get a conservative majority on the board. That effort failed. Progressives, however, were able to oust long-time conservative incumbent Warren L Weber, replacing him with Green Party-backed Hillary Bradbury-Huang, an Irish immigrant who is a Pepperdine and USC professor.
Beth Wells-Miller was opposed by GOP-endorsed Brandon Powers (who was also inexplicably endorsed by the local Democratic State Senator Jack Scott). Though the challenge was well-funded (I received a ton of Powers mailers), Wells-Miller (I voted for her!)
inched past her District 7 opponent.
BETH WELLS-MILLER 4,421 53.79
BRANDON POWERS 3,798 46.21
Meanwhile, in the 5th district, Bradbury-Huang mounted an incredible upset.
H BRADBURY-HUANG 5,299 51.12
WARREN L WEBER 5,067 48.88
% Precincts Reporting 100
The key to progressive wins in these areas is probably linked to two factors in these dynamic communities. One is the very high quality of the public schools. When the public sector is effective (see=Mark Warner's VA), even the most affluent and traditionally GOP voters become willing to support it.
The second factor is that these areas are becoming increasingly multi-cultural. San Marino, Arcadia, and Temple City each have Asian majorities or pluralities. Right-wing extremism has little appeal to the Asian-American political community in the San Gabriel Valley. It is eminently pragmatic and extremely supportive of public schools. I'm sure it didn't hurt that Bradbury-Huang has a Chinese surname!