Christy Holstege foregoes recount

Christy Holstege Concedes to Greg Wallis

Christy Holstege and family in Idyllwild.

PALM SPRINGS — After spending part of the weekend in Idyllwild with her son, Aden, and husband, Adam, where they met 3-month-old Mayor Max III and his sister Meadow in their first public appearances, according to her Facebook page, Democrat Christy Holstege on Monday morning called Greg Wallis to congratulate him on winning the California Legislature’s 47th Assembly District.

“The votes have all been counted, and it is clear that by the very thinnest of margins, we have fallen just short of victory, coming the closest this district has ever come to electing a Democrat to State Assembly,” Holstege said in a prepared statement. “With slightly better turn out, we would have flipped this district blue.”

The final margin was 85 votes out of 170,000 cast —the closest State Assembly race in more than 40 years, and the closest that this district has ever been. The election was so close that the seat remained vacant on Dec. 5th when all 79 other Assembly districts had their new members sworn in, according to Holstege.

“If anybody ever tells you their vote doesn’t count, tell them about this Assembly race that was decided by just 85 votes,” Holstege said. “Our democracy depends on everyone participating and voting like their rights and their futures depend on it.”

Holstege said her campaign was history-making.

“No openly bisexual woman has ever been elected to the California Legislature, and while we fell short, we came closer than any candidate ever has to breaking that glass ceiling,” Holstege said. “And we’ve learned, once again in 2022, we can never take a woman or an LGBTQ candidate winning a race for granted, since the barriers to our success are still very much real.

While Holstege said she is disappointed by the outcome, she is determined to continue serving her community in every way possible. She remains on the Palm Springs City Council. Her term expires in December 2024.

“Nothing about this election result changes my commitment to advocating for the issues that matter most to our community, and I will do everything in my power to make sure that our assembly district has strong representation that reflects our values, our communities get our fair share of resources, and we advocate collectively on important issues from fair wages, to climate change, to affordable housing, to equitable access to healthcare, to civil rights, and safer communities. I am not done serving and am not done fighting for our community.

Holstege had been considering a recount given the slim margin. She finished 85 votes behind Wallis, who announced last week he had won.

“As promised, I’ll work with anyone with good ideas —Democrats, Republicans, and Independents —to make real changes that make life more affordable, with more opportunity, for everyone,” Wallis said in a prepared statement.

With all votes counted, the hard-fought race was the closest contest for an Assembly seat since 1980, according to Alex Vassar, communication manager with the California State Library.

Assembly District 47 covers much of the previous district represented by outgoing Assemblymember Chad Mayes and includes most of the western and central Coachella Valley. The district also includes Banning, Beaumont and Idyllwild, and extends into Yucca Valley and Yucaipa in San Bernardino County.

Holstege won 54% of votes in Riverside County, where most of the district is located. Wallis maintained a comfortable lead in San Bernardino County, which is described as “red,” winning roughly 64% of its vote share. Final vote totals showed Wallis with 84,752 votes to 84,667 for Holstege.

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  • Christy Holstege: Christy Holstege