Kevin Johnson

Former state Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez endorsed Sacramento mayoral candidate Kevin Johnson today.

“Sacramento should be one of the state’s crown jewels, representing the best California has to offer. Someplace people want to live, visit and invest in,” said Nunez. “That’s why I feel it’s important for me to speak out in support of Kevin Johnson and what he can bring this community.”

“Sacramento needs a more dynamic approach, and that’s what Kevin Johnson provides,” he added.

Nunez’s endorsement comes one day after it was announced that Johnson and incumbent Mayor Heather Fargo would be headed to a fall runoff election. In the June 3 primary, the political newcomer Johnson won 46 percent of the vote to Fargo’s 40 percent.

The Sacramento mayor’s race is officially headed to a fall runoff between top primary vote-getters Kevin Johnson and Heather Fargo.

After more than a week of counting absentee votes, the Sacramento County Registrar of Voters has posted an update on its Web site noting that neither incumbent Heather Fargo nor challenger Kevin Johnson received the mandatory 51 percent in the June 3 primary needed to avoid a November general election.

With all 378 precincts counted, Johnson, a former professional basketball player, won 30,929 votes, good for 46 percent. Fargo, a two-term incumbent, won 26,669 votes, good for 39 percent. Other candidates in the race, including Leonard Padilla, Shawn Eldredge, and Muriel Strand, accounted for the remaining votes.

Kevin Johnson has taken the lead over incumbent Heather Fargo in the race for Sacramento mayor.

With about 71 percent of the votes counted, Johnson has 47.5 percent and Fargo has 39.8 percent.

To avoid a November runoff, either candidate will need to meet a 50 percent plus 1 threshold.

It is unclear if a winner will be known Tuesday. The Sacramento Bee is reporting that about 15,000 absentee votes have yet to be counted.

Two candidates running in June 3 races are rolling out endorsements Friday.

Republican U.S. House candidate Doug Ose, running for the seat of retiring U.S. Rep. John Doolittle has won the endorsements of the Auburn Police Officers Association, the Placer County Deputy Sheriffs Association and the California Coalition of Law Enforcement Associations and the endorsement from the California Republican Taxpayers Association.

“Doug Ose is the only candidate who has proven himself as a tireless advocate for public safety and criminal justice,” said Josh Tindall, who is the president of the Placer County Deputy Sheriffs Association. “He shows a genuine concern for Placer County and is on our side in the fight to make our communities safe. I know he can be counted on in the future to advocate for law enforcement and will do what it takes to get things accomplished for us.”

Several candidates are rolling out endorsements with the June 3 voting day nearing.

Republican U.S. House candidate Tom McClintock, running for the seat of retiring District 4 U.S. Rep. John Doolittle,  has won the endorsement of the Young Republican Federation of California.

“To have conservative Young Republicans in the state go on record and support Senator McClintock is a testament of his conservative credentials,” said Benjamin Lopez, the organization’s chair. “Young Republicans in California recognize that Tom McClintock truly represents them in the conservative cause. He has always been there for Young Republicans in this state.”

Sacramento Mayor Heather Fargo, facing a June 3 primary challenge from former professional basketball player Kevin Johnson, is finding herself under fire from a city councilman who says he is switching his support from Fargo to Johnson.

Robbie Waters, a former Sacramento County Sheriff who was elected to the Sacramento City Council in 1994, pounded Fargo in a Friday statement, saying the mayor “has not stepped up to condemn” the Plumbers and Pipefitters Union Local #447, an organization that is backing Fargo’s campaign and that has taken aim at Johnson.

“I was an early supporter of Mayor Fargo, and I expected to be with her until Election Day.  But I am extremely upset by the negative, despicable and disgraceful smear campaign being run by her allies, the Plumbers and Pipefitters union Local #447.  As a result, I can no longer stand with her,” said Waters.

With just over a week until primary voters head to the polls, a new poll out today shows incumbent Heather Fargo leading challenger Kevin Johnson in the race for Sacramento mayor.

The poll, conducted by the Sacramento Bee and KXJZ News, shows Fargo picking up 37 percent support and Johnson picking up 30 percent. 29 percent said they were undecided.

Fargo, a two term incumbent, is facing off in a June 3 primary against Johnson, a political newcomer who is a former professional basketball player. Fargo or Johnson needs to receive 50 percent of the vote in the primary to avoid a November runoff election.

The survey of 500 likely voters was conducted between May 15 and May 19. The margin of error is 4.5 percent.

In his two month run for the Sacramento mayor’s seat, Kevin Johnson has faced a barrage of questions about his personal conduct. Through it all, Johnson’s campaign has attempted to deflect the charges by presenting its vision for the city if Johnson unseats incumbent Heather Fargo.

"Ultimately, this is a contest between Mayor Fargo's status quo message versus Kevin's forward-looking message of leadership," said Christy Setzer, a spokeswoman for Johnson.

But with the June 3 primary approaching, one of the major questions facing the campaign is how effectively it prevented the litany of negative stories – ranging from allegations that Johnson engaged in inappropriate sexual behavior with a minor at a nonprofit where he once worked to accusations that he let residential properties he managed deteriorate – from damaging Johnson’s public image as a fresh-faced political newcomer who has said he could inject a troubled city with a new sense of leadership.

Sacramento Mayor Heather Fargo is hitting the airwaves with a new television advertisement.

The 10-second ad, entitled “Trust,” went on the air last week, but campaign manager Dale Howard tells PolitickerCA.com that the spot will begin airing more heavily this week on network stations. Howard would not specify the amount of money the campaign had invested in the ad but said it was in the “hundreds of thousands of dollars.”

The spot, which simply juxtaposes Fargo’s name with the word “Trust,” is designed to highlight what the campaign says is her integrity. But the ad also is a subtle shot at Fargo’s leading challenger in the June 3 primary, Kevin Johnson. Johnson has been plagued by questions of sexual and financial improprieties since he entered the race several months ago.

A spokesperson for the Johnson campaign declined to comment on the ad.

Two candidates running in June 3 primary races are hawking newspaper endorsements today.

Republican Doug Ose, running for the Roseville-area seat of retiring U.S. Rep. John Doolittle, has won the endorsement of the Auburn Journal, a Gold Country daily.

"During these challenging times, we need a leader who can represent and unite the entire 4th District. Out of the four seeking election on the Republican primary ballot, Doug Ose is the best choice," the paper said.

In the race for Sacramento mayor, Kevin Johnson won the endorsement of the weekly Sacramento Union.

“Sacramento has found a mayoral candidate who is prepared to lead—homegrown athlete, education visionary, community activist and philanthropist Kevin Johnson. We are proud to endorse him for mayor,” the paper said.