Challenger Martha Abraham leads Councilmember Henry Foster III by 1,779 votes in San Diego's District 4

San Diego City Councilmember Henry Foster III was trailing challenger Martha Abraham in District 4, according to unofficial results posted by the San Diego County Registrar of Voters at 5:46 p.m. Nov. 6.

Abraham had 14,080 votes, or 53.37%, to Foster's 12,301, or 46.63%, a margin of 1,779 votes. It was the closest of the four City Council races on the Nov. 3 ballot and the only one with an incumbent trailing.

Four of the council's nine seats were up this year: Districts 2, 4, 6 and 8. City Council races are nonpartisan, and the ballot lists no party for the candidates.

In District 6, Council President Pro Tem Kent Lee led Mark Powell 19,267 votes, or 60.58%, to 12,536, or 39.42%.

In District 2, Nicole Crosby led Richard Bailey 22,987 votes, or 55.07%, to 18,752, or 44.93%. The seat is now held by Councilmember Jennifer Campbell, who was not on the ballot.

In District 8, Antonio Martinez led Gerardo Ramirez 13,271 votes, or 56.80%, to 10,094, or 43.20%. The seat is now held by Councilmember Vivian Moreno, who was not on the ballot.

The registrar's Nov. 6 update counted 886,224 ballots countywide, 43.6% of 2,034,153 registered voters. The registrar projected about 390,000 ballots still outstanding countywide and scheduled its next results post for Nov. 9 by 6 p.m. The registrar does not break out how many of the outstanding ballots are from each council district.

With roughly 30% of the county's expected ballots still to be counted, Foster's 1,779-vote deficit in District 4 is close enough that late-counted mail and provisional ballots could change the outcome. The leads in Districts 2, 6 and 8 are larger, ranging from 3,177 votes in District 8 to 6,731 votes in District 6.

No City of San Diego ballot measures appeared on the Nov. 3 ballot, according to the registrar's list of contests. San Diego Unified School District's Measure M, a school bond that needs 55% to pass, had 164,879 yes votes, or 65.67%, to 86,194 no votes, or 34.33%.

Another council seat could open next year. District 5 Councilmember Marni von Wilpert led the race for the 48th Congressional District in the same update.

All results are unofficial. The registrar must certify results in December.