Joe Gomez new mayor of Barstow; Measure D fails

I would like to thank all my friends and my family for having the confidence in me to lead Barstow in a new direction. Joe

BARSTOW -- With all precincts reporting, challenger Joe Gomez has defeated incumbent Lawrence Dale in the race for mayor of Barstow. The final vote is 45.97 percent to 36.16 percent. Nathaniel Picket is a distant third at 17.86 percent The final tally for City Council gives Timothy Saenze and Willie Hailey the two seats, but the numbers are extremely close. Timothy Saenz lead with 20.83 percent of the vote. In an extremely close race for the second seat, Willie Hailey followed with 20.38 percent of the vote, while Carmen Hernadez lags behind 20.33 percent. There are only four votes separating Hailey and Hernandez, and provisional ballots have not yet been counted.Measure D has failed. With 16 of 16 precincts reporting, only 56.6 percent of Barstow voters voted in favor of the sales tax increase to pay for police and firefighters. The measure requires 67 percent approval to pass. Latest numbers for races of local impact: MayorJoe Gomez 45.97%Lawrence Dale 36.16%Nathaniel H. Pickett 17.86%16 of 16 precincts countedCity Council (two seats)Timothy Saenz 20.83%Willie L. Hailey Sr. 20.38%Carmen M. Hernandez 20.33%Richard Villegas 15.63%Herchel Eugene (Gene) Deaton 7.79%Marvin A. Ellis 7.68%Manuel Gilbert Gurule 7.36%16 of 16 precincts counted