Dawn Addis leads Democratic nomination for 30th District Assembly race 

The pop of a Champagne cork and hoots of jubilation from a crowd of 20 resounded through the San Luis Obispo County Democratic Party headquarters on June 7. They celebrated Dawn Addis, the party's endorsement across three counties for Assembly District 30, for leading the blue nomination on election night.

"The early results are extremely encouraging. I sincerely thank every voter on the Central Coast for making their voices heard," Addis told New Times on June 8, the morning after polls closed.

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• Photo By Bulbul Rajagopal
• BLUE BOLSTER State Representative-hopeful Dawn Addis (right) celebrates her lead in the initial vote count with SLO Democratic Party Chair Rita Casaverde at the party's headquarters in the city of SLO.

While the results will be certified on July 15, early numbers show Addis holding a comfortable margin over the other Democratic front-runner Jon Wizard. If her lead holds, Addis will face Republican Vicki Nohrden in the November general election.

The 30th District is the newly formed district that got redistricted from the previous 35th Assembly District, which Addis failed to capture in 2020. It spans SLO, Monterey, and Santa Cruz counties. According to numbers last updated at 3:16 a.m. on June 8, Addis had received 43.4 percent of votes across the district. Wizard received 10.5 percent, while Nohrden pulled in 33.4 percent.

Endorsements from all three Democratic Party chapters in the 30th District counties potentially smoothed the way for Addis to rule the blue roost in the initial count. She received the highest amounts so far—44.59 percent, 42.20 percent, and 37.71 percent of votes in SLO, Monterey, and Santa Cruz counties, respectively.

The old 35th Assembly District has been represented by Republican Jordan Cunningham. His decision to not run for reelection allowed Nohrden to enter. But John Ashbaugh, the former state Assembly Democratic candidate for SLO and Santa Barbara counties (though unsuccessful), is excited for Addis to possibly usher in political change.

"I'm pleased to see that the district is configured now to take in more of the coastal territory that we do with connect with, like Monterey and Santa Cruz counties that allow a Democrat to make a strong case. When I ran in '92, the district had just been created," Ashbaugh said. "It was this county and a little piece of northern Santa Barbara County, which although normally Democratic, voted Republican.

"I was facing terrible headwinds [during the 1992 and 1994 campaigns], but Dawn has the wind in her back," he continued. "I'm quite sure she'll win in November barring unforeseen circumstances. She's got the experience, the temperament, and the people skills." Δ