The three Stockton City Council members running for new terms held on to leads early Wednesday as ballots were still being counted from California’s primary election.

But only District 1’s Michele Padilla was clinging to a margin above 50%, the amount needed to avoid a November runoff.

Padilla had 51% of the vote as 6 a.m. Wednesday, with Tamica Small holding second place with 27%. In District 3, Michael Blower led with 46%, while newcomer Jessica Toccoli had 39%. And in District 5, Brando Villapudua had 36%. His closest challenger, Desiree Lynch, was about 6 percentage points behind.

Voter participation appeared low. It was listed as 18.1%, but Registrar of Voters Olivia Hale said she hoped it would rise to between 30% and 40% by the time all the ballots had been counted. More than 15,000 people voted at the polls. An additional 81,000 ballots were received by mail.

Hale was seen rushing around in a bright pink vest with her name on the back early Tuesday night as workers scrambled to tally votes. A cadre of volunteers in yellow vests waited to carry in the first batch of ballots; cheers went up as it rolled in.

The three Stockton City Council seats that are in play are:

• District 1: This race will test whether a big contribution from a celebrity can make a difference. Small received one of the largest individual campaign donations in any race — from actress Tiffany Haddish. Others competing include Lan Nguyen, Annette Sanchez and Shelly Hollis.
• District 3: This race is being closely watched to see whether Blower can hold off a well-financed “ghost” candidate. That’s Toccoli, who has run an active campaign without any personal appearances or media interviews. Joey Veltri and Stephanie Alfaro are also vying the seat.
• District 5: Villapudua faces Lynch, plus Ruben Harper, Mary Elizabeth and Max Beas.

Candidate gatherings started even before the polls closed Tuesday night. Blower held his in a back room at Octavio’s, a Mexican-themed restaurant on Benjamin Holt Drive.

Vice Mayor Jason Lee showed up to lend support to his fellow councilmember. Lee said Blower has integrity and moral authority and has earned his respect, even though they don’t always agree on policy.

Blower said he was proud but nervous about the results.

“I know we ran a good, strong race. I feel really good about that,” he told Stocktonia. “You’re never fully comfortable till the results start coming in, so there’s always a little bit of nerves, but I know that we did everything we could.”

Sanchez was upbeat at her watch party at Kasi’s Chicken & Fries.

And Villapudua expressed confidence at a private gathering at Miguel’s Mexican Dining.

“I told my community what I was going to do. I was big in parks and community centers, cleanups, and I’ve done it,” he said.

Later, as the results rolled in, he said he was certain he’d made the runoff.

“I’m ahead now. I feel great,” Villapudua said. “But there’s still a lot of work to do. It looks like it’s going to November (the general election). But tonight, I’m enjoying it with the supporters that helped me through this process.”

Villapudua challenger Lynch greeted supporters at the Fed in downtown Stockton, where they munched appetizers while awaiting results.

Lynch said she was proud that her 18-year-old daughter cast her first vote in an election — and she got a chance to vote for her mom.

“I feel like today has been a ball of emotions,” Lynch said, “but I’m extremely excited to see the results of my hard work.” She added that she remains devoted to improving the community, regardless of the outcome of the primary.

“Win or lose, I’m still going to work and do whatever I can to make Stockton better,” Lynch said.

While the focus was on council races, other local offices were in play as well.

In the race for San Joaquin County assessor-recorder-county clerk, incumbent Steve Bestolarides was leading with 66% of the vote, while challenger Zachary Avelar had 34%. Bestolarides is seeking another term in an office that oversees property assessments, recorded documents, vital records and elections-related clerk services.

For the county Board of Supervisors, the two incumbents each faced a single opponent. Supervisor Paul Canepa in District 2 is being opposed by Lauren Cardinalli. And Supervisor Steven Ding is competing against Travis Castle.

Canepa had 67% of the vote, and Ding had 58% — putting both well out of runoff range.

For the 13th Congressional District, former Stockton Mayor Kevin Lincoln, a Republican, is challenging U.S. Rep. Adam Gray, a Democrat, along with two others. Gray had 41% to Lincoln’s 29% in returns as of Wednesday morning. And in Congressional District 9, U.S. Rep. Josh Harder, a Democrat, is facing three vying for his seat. He had amassed 57%.

Outside of Stockton, most attention is being paid to the governor’s race. As of Wednesday morning, Republican Steve Hilton, who was endorsed by President Donald Trump, had tallied 28% of the vote. In a tight second was Democrat Xavier Becerra, the former state attorney general and health secretary under the Biden administration, with 25%.

There was local interest in the contest for lieutenant governor: Former Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs was making a bid for California’s No. 2 in a crowded field. But his hopes of making it to November looked dim; he was running fourth.

Stocktonia staff writers Annie Barker and Chris Woodyard contributed to this report.