By Donald H. Harrison

SAN DIEGO, Calif.— It was a clean sweep  for Jewish candidates in San Diego County congressional and local contests, with two members of Congress winning renomination on the Democratic ticket, three county officials winning reelection in nonpartisan elections, and a newcomer narrowly defeating his former boss in the district attorney's office to become a Superior Court judge.

The toughest races in the election Tuesday, June 6,  pitted U.S. Rep. Bob Filner (D-San Diego) in a successful battle to retain his 51st Congressional District seat against challenges  from Assemblyman Juan Vargas (D-San Diego) and Daniel Ramirez, while  Deputy District Attorney David Rubin overcame the higher name recognition of former District Attorney Paul Pfingst to win a Superior Court judgeship. 

It was the third time that Vargas and Filner had opposed each other, but this battle was more bitterly fought.  Vargas criticized Filner for having his wife on his campaign payroll likening Filner in television commercials to San Diego County's  former Republican Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-Rancho Santa Fe), who is now serving a federal prison term for taking a bribe.   

Filner hammered Vargas meanwhile for taking many thousands of dollars in contributions from insurance companies while serving as chairman of the state Assembly committee that regulates the insurance industry. One of his commercials featured a victim of the disastrous fire that burned hundreds of homes in San Diego County in 2003, saying that rather than helping the victims Vargas sided with the insurance companies.

With Vargas having participated in the drawing of the district lines while in the Legislature to include as many Hispanic voters as possible in the district running the length of California's border with Mexico, many people feared that the race could be cast as one of an Hispanic against a Jew, possibly creating bitterness in the two communities.  But Filner was able to win the endorsement of most Mexican-American political organizations, who were more impressed by his voting record than by Juan Vargas' Hispanic name.

In the battle for Superior Court Office No. 49,  it was interesting to note that Pfingst had been defeated four years ago for a second term as San Diego County's district attorney by Superior Court Judge Bonnie Dumanis, a Jewish lesbian.  In Rubin, he faced and lost to a former deputy who is Jewish and gay. Since being defeated as district attorney, Pfingst had served as a private attorney and as a television commentator on various legal cases.  But Rubin, who headed up the district attorney's unit on hate crimes, received endorsements from Dumanis and Sheriff Bill Kolender as well as nearly every organization of law enforcement employees in the county.  

Dumanis was unopposed for reelection this election and won a four-year term following the June 6 voting.  U.S. Rep. Susan Davis (D-San Diego) was unopposed for the Democratic nomination in her  53rd congressional district and is expected not to have any difficulty winning reelection in November.

Curiously, the man whom Davis turned out of office to win the seat in 2000—Republican Brian Bilbray—was making a comeback in the 50th Congressional District race for the disgraced Cunningham's seat, defeating Democrat Francine Busby in a special election to fill the vacancy created by Cunningham's conviction on federal charges.  Bilbray and Busby meanwhile were winning the Republican and Democratic nominations respectively to oppose each other all over again in the November election.

Sheriff Kolender had no trouble turning back an election challenge from a deputy sheriff under his command, receiving over 70 percent of the vote against Bruce Ruff.

Kolender and Dumanis made endorsements in two other judgeship races besides that pitting  Rubin against Pfingst, and the combination of sheriff and district attorney proved potent.  Randa Trapp won outright in a two-person race for Superior Court Office No. 16 over James V. Hairgrove, while Rod Shelton came in first in a four-person battle for Office No. 36.

Greg Smith, the longtime county tax assessor, recorder and clerk, swamped opponent Howard Johnson by a margin of 9-1 in a low profile contest that never was in any doubt.

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In statewide election contests, U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif) won easy renomination in the Democratic primary election. However,  State Sen. Jackie Speier (D-San Francisco) was outdistanced by Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi in a battle for the Democratic nomination for California lieutenant governor.