Race tightens for City Council seats

In the race for the two open seats on the Shafter City Council, Mayor Cathy Prout has kept her large lead in Nov. 8’s election, gathering 34% of the vote for a total of 1,682 votes, easily outdistancing all of the other candidates

But, the race for the remaining seat has tightened since the last update. According to the Kern Elections Office, incumbent Cesar Lopez has closed the gap with Gustavo Olvera, with only 31 votes separating the two. After the previous update, Olvera had taken a 100-vote lead, but Lopez cut 69 votes into that lead with the new numbers.

The election results are to be certified by the county on Dec. 16.

--Jamie Stewart