PACIFIC GROVE City Councilman Bill Kampe overwhelmingly defeated incumbent Mayor Carmelita Garcia in Tuesday’s election, while a Naval Postgraduate School professor won a council seat and two incumbents were reelected.

Kampe’s crushing victory landed him more than 71 percent of the vote, receiving 3,731 votes to Garcia’s 1,494, according to semi-official results released by the Monterey County elections office.

Kampe, who was pleased with the results, said there was a message behind the upset.

“I think the voters were saying they wanted to see something different happening, that they want to see a change in the way we do business as a council,” Kampe told The Pine Cone Wednesday.

Kampe thanked his supporters and urged them to stay involved in the three biggest issues facing the city — the high cost of public pensions, water supply and business vitality.

“I look forward to representing everybody and making progress on the issues we have in front of us,” he said. “Continued support from citizens is important.”

Garcia was elected to the Pacific Grove City Council in 2008. In September 2009, upon the resignation of Dan Cort, she was appointed mayor on a coin toss against Kampe after the council couldn’t come up with the four required votes to select a mayor. She ran unopposed and was reelected mayor in 2010.

Garcia did not return phone and email messages left by The Pine Cone.

Professor wins seat

NPS professor Casey Lucius, who has lived in Pacific Grove for four-and-a-half-years, received 3,746 votes, the biggest number in the council race, which had four other candidates.
Lucius, 36, also the youngest person to be elected to the council in a long time, thanked residents for their monetary donations, putting up “Casey for Council” signs in their yard and general show of support.

“It was really touching to have so much support,” Lucius told The Pine Cone, “and to know so many people were backing me.”

Incumbent councilmen Dan Miller and Robert Huitt were reelected. Miller received 2,300 votes, and Huitt got 3,072.

“I’m glad the people of Pacific Grove have entrusted me to represent their interests for another four years,” Miller said.

Huitt said he’s looking forward to continuing to work on the city’s “tough issues.”

“I’m of course very pleased with the outcome,” Huitt said. “I’m very grateful for the show of support from the public.”

Council candidates Mary Norton and Bob Pacelli fell short but received a surprisingly strong show of support, with Norton getting 1,909 votes and Pacelli, a filmmaker and monarch butterfly enthusiast, getting 1,637.