Controversy threatens to derail Kern County Senate race

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

A dispute over residency could threaten the candidacy of Democratic nominee Michael Rubio in what is expected to be one of the most contested Senate races of the year.

At issue is whether Rubio lives in the 16th Senate District, a Central Valley district that includes Kings County as well as parts of Fresno, Kern and Tulare counties. But there’s a twist -- county election officials have told Rubio he lives in the district even though a number of public databases show otherwise.

Rubio told Capitol Weekly that he has always been told his home is in the 16th District, even though records seem to indicate he actually lives in the neighboring 18th District -- a strongly Republican district held by Sen. Roy Ashburn (R-Bakersfield). Rubio said he received a ballot for a 16th District voter earlier this month and voted for himself in the Democratic primary.

Kern County election officials did not return calls seeking comment.

Capitol Weekly has more details here.