Withrow looks forward to fourth term. Grewal wins easily in Stanislaus District 4
Terry Withrow appeared to win a rematch election over Tony Madrigal for the District 3 seat on the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors.
Withrow, who’s seeking a fourth term, was ahead with 60% in a partial tally of ballots cast for Tuesday’s primary election. Madrigal, a Modesto city councilman, had 40%. Withrow had an 1,100-vote lead Wednesday morning.
The vote count so far was 3,295 to 2,196, indicating a paltry turnout for the primary election.
The county elections office expects to release the next update in the count Thursday. The unofficial results showed 33,290 ballots had been tabulated by Wednesday morning. What remains is mail ballots returned early this week and votes cast on Election Day.
“I feel good, but I’m going to wait until I see the final numbers,” Withrow said Wednesday. “I appreciate all the support I have.”
Madrigal said late Tuesday he was “humbled by all the support I’ve received from the voters, community and supporters.”
Tuesday’s election was a primary, but the winner of the two-way race will begin the board term in early January. The supervisorial district includes west and northwest Modesto, Salida and the Wood Colony area.
In another county government race, appointed Supervisor Mani Grewal cruised to victory over Joel DeGraef in District 4, which includes most of Modesto, Del Rio and part of Ceres.
Grewal, a business owner and former Modesto councilman, held a commanding lead with 78.5% to 21.5% for DeGraef, a retired Calaveras County deputy.
“I am humbled by people’s confidence in me — to elect me for a four-year term,” Grewal said. “I hope I can continue to serve the people to the best of my ability.”
Grewal said he’s looking forward to the board continuing work on economic development opportunities, public safety and addressing homelessness. “In the next four years, we need to make good progress on those,” he said.
DeGraef said he was disappointed by the low turnout. “That was dumbfounding to me,” he said. “Apparently people are tired of voting and they gave up on the democratic system. No one got off their couch. At least I did and I gave them a choice.”
A contentious election between Withrow and Madrigal in the November 2018 election wasn’t decided until the final results were released more than three weeks after Election Day. Withrow prevailed by 129 votes, earning a third four-year term.
The voter turnout for the Tuesday primary was much lower than in November 2018.
Madrigal said during the campaign this year that local residents told him they wanted change in county leadership because of lack of progress with reducing homelessness.
Withrow said Tuesday night that the county has been “making great progress on homelessness and we have a lot of hope we will solve this problem.”
Madrigal raised $145,200 in his second campaign for the Board of Supervisors, not counting late contributions received after May 21. Withrow took in $105,275.
The 2022 rematch featured a barrage of negative campaign mailers. Withrow promoted his endorsements from public safety unions, including the Modesto Police Officers Association and city firefighters, plus the Farm Bureau and three Modesto council members.
Withrow also drew on support from Wood Colony residents, who feared that campaign donations for Madrigal from a major landowner would lead to development proposals in the rural area.
Madrigal attacked Withrow for not wearing a mask at board meetings during COVID-19 surges and for a Facebook post on the Jan. 6, 2021, riot in Washington, D.C. Withrow’s post said both the Jan. 6 rioters and police brutality protesters who caused destruction in cities were sincere in their beliefs and violence is not the answer.
Another Madrigal flyer claimed Withrow was in favor of annexing Salida to Modesto. Withrow has openly opposed annexation of Salida and Wood Colony territory.
This story was originally published June 7, 2022 at 8:33 PM.
