Only one race tonight, but it's a big one. In San Diego, voters will go to the polls to elect a replacement for disgraced former Mayor Bob Filner. The candidates are Democratic city Councilor David Alvarez, and Republican Councilor Kevin Faulconer. Polls close at 11 PM Eastern.
The stakes are high in the nation's eighth largest city. The California Republican party has fallen on hard times of late and would see a Faulconer victory as a shot-in-the-arm. Republicans also have a weak statewide bench and a Mayor Faulconer would give them a welcome candidate. The winner will have nearly three years of service before the next general election in Nov. of 2016.
For information about the candidates, closing times, and future elections, see our calendar here.
8:04 PM PT: Polls have closed in San Diego, and we'll be bringing you the results as we get them.
8:10 PM PT: We have some early votes in, and they do not look good. With about 167,000 votes in, Falcouner leads 57-43.
8:15 PM PT: About 242,000 votes were cast in the primary. Even if turnout's up, these early votes represent a very big part of the electorate. Hard to see Alvarez making up ground.
8:27 PM PT: If primary night was a good guide, it'll be a while before we get the next batch of results. But with the early vote so large and pro-GOP, things looks very good for Falcouner.
8:30 PM PT: Sure enough, the local board of elections says we won't see the first round of election day votes until 9:30-10:00 Pacific.
8:41 PM PT: Local Board of Elections projects 45-50 percent voter turnout. The city of San Diego has 682,000 registered voters, so that would mean between 307,000-341,000 voters tonight. So far 167,000 votes have been counted.
9:19 PM PT: According to my back-of-the envelope map, Alverez would need about 58 percent of the remaining ballots to win if turnout is 45 percent. If turnout is 50 percent, he'd need about 56.5 percent of the remaining vote to win.
10:07 PM PT: There's been an additional 13,000 votes added to the pile and the needle hasn't moved. Falcouner continues to lead 57-43.
10:37 PM PT: Big jump in votes in, but Falcouner still keeps his double-digit lead. With 217,004 votes counted, Falcouner is up 55-45. Not looking much better, and Alverez is running out of space.
10:43 PM PT: Based on my math, Alvarez will need about 60 percent of the vote in turnout hits 50 percent. If it's at 45 percent, he'd need 63.5 percent to narrowly win. Not likely unless the remaining precincts are dark blue.
11:06 PM PT: Now we have 238,000 votes in, and Falcouner leads 55-45.
11:18 PM PT: Waiting on next batch of numbers to make sure no surprises, but all but a certainty Falcouner has this.
11:35 PM PT: San Diego seems to be in no hurry to count the rest of the ballots, but it's clear Falcouner has won. We're calling it a night: Thanks for reading!