San Diego Leaders Criticize Candidate Over Group Support
“Either it’s a failure in morality, in being able to disassociate yourself from people who are doing things you don’t believe in, or it’s a failure in leadership because you don’t have the leadership capability to get people to act the right way who are standing beside you and supporting you,” San Diego City Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera said at a press conference, as voiceofsandiego.org reported.
Elected Leaders Condemn Abraham and San Diego United Communities at Downtown Press Conference
The Thursday press conference featured City Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera alongside County Supervisor Monica Montgomery Steppe, attorney Geneviéve Jones-Wright, and local residents. The group took turns criticizing Martha Abraham for her alignment with San Diego United Communities, a nonpartisan group of residents frustrated by large-scale development projects and incumbent city leadership. While the organization has endorsed and actively advocated for City Council candidates, its efforts specifically target the seats held by current officials.
Montgomery Steppe leveled heavy accusations against the group during the event, stating that the organization “masquerades as a non-threatening coalition of neighborhoods” while actively promoting racist images and rhetoric directed at Black leaders in San Diego. Speakers zeroed in on two specific cartoons depicting Foster and Montgomery Steppe, arguing that Abraham’s ongoing affiliation with the group compromises her platform.
Elo-Rivera dismissed prior assertions from Abraham’s campaign that the group operates entirely autonomously. Pointing to public appearances, Elo-Rivera argued that Abraham has repeatedly stood alongside the organization’s members, making disassociation impossible to claim.
Campaign Consultants and Organization Representatives Fire Back Against Establishment Attacks
Abraham and her campaign pushed back forcefully against the downtown criticism. Jared Sclar, Abraham’s campaign consultant, previously maintained that any activity undertaken by San Diego United Communities remains entirely independent of Martha Abraham’s campaign.
In a direct email statement provided to reporters, Abraham turned the critique back on the sitting councilmember. “It is not surprising that establishment politicians who created the mess at City Hall today continue to attack Martha,” Abraham wrote. “For him to lecture anyone about a ‘failure in leadership’ is ironic given the record of City Hall over the last 6 years.”
Patty Ducey-Brooks, spokesperson for San Diego United Communities, defended the group’s endorsement and rejected the characterizations made by city officials. Ducey-Brooks clarified that Abraham is not a formal member of the group, and explained that the coalition endorsed the candidate strictly because of her policy plans for the district. Condemning the tone of the elected officials, Ducey-Brooks argued that public servants should respond to criticism professionally rather than launching attacks. “Nobody’s judged by their color, by their background, by their characters, by their history,” Ducey-Brooks stated. “They’re judged by their contributions to doing good in the community. And that’s what’s wrong with our politicians today. It’s not about doing good. It’s about demeaning people, criticizing people, agendas.”
Erin Chancler Resigns as Edgemoor Facility Administrator
Beyond the City Council race turbulence, county operations faced leadership changes this week. Erin Chancler, who has served as the administrator of the Edgemoor distinct part skilled nursing facility since 2020, announced her departure effective October 16. Chancler noted in a Tuesday announcement that her exit followed nearly eight years of service with the county, calling it a decision made with considerable thought. County spokesperson Tim McClain stated that Chancler resigned to pursue another opportunity, though the county has not yet clarified who will assume an interim leadership role at the facility.
Meanwhile, South Bay lawmakers celebrated legislative wins in Sacramento. State Assemblymember David Alvarez secured Gov. Gavin Newsom’s signature on a bill allowing community colleges to offer bachelor’s degrees, providing a direct boost to Southwestern College. State Sen. Steve Padilla also won approval for legislation limiting mark-ups on detention center commissaries alongside property tax exemptions for those facilities. In county policy matters, County Supervisor Joel Anderson proposed extending email and text message retention policies from two years to at least five years, following scrutiny over purged communications related to a former county contractor case.