Foat, Mills win re-election in Palm Springs; Parks wins DHS mayoral race
Staff reports
The Desert Sun

Chris Mills and Ginny Foat have won re-election in the race for Palm Springs City Council. In Desert Hot Springs, incumbent Yvonne Parks is on track to win easily over Russell Betts.

• Live election returns (The site will update as the election returns become available from Riverside County.)

• Visit mydesert.com/elections for complete election coverage

In the crowded Palm Springs City Council race, Foat received 23.4% of the vote while Mills received 21.6% to edge out third-place finisher Barbara Beaty (18.6%). Eight other candidates vyed for the two available seats. As of 11:20 p.m., 100% of the precincts had reported.

As of 11:20 p.m., with eight of nine precincts reporting, Parks enjoyed a comfortable 982-571 vote lead over challenger Betts.

Early in the evening, Parks watched returns at Sidewinder Grill, 66-121 Pierson Blvd., in Desert Hot Springs. Upon learning of her significant lead, with five of the city's nine precincts counted, Parks began a chant of joy, which her supporters readily repeated.

"Parks! Matas! Pye!," she yelled. "Parks! Matas! Pye!"

"It’s very exciting. I’m so elated,” Parks said. “It means everything to Desert Hot Springs. I think it’s the right thing for DHS to continue with this momentum.”

She walked around the restaurant, applauding and saying, “You see those numbers? Look at those numbers.”

In the Desert Hot Springs City Council race, Scott Matas and Jan Pye held leads, also with eight of nine precincts reporting, for the two available seats. Matas was first with 958 votes, followed by Pye's 729. Russ Martin was in third place with 650 votes.

Pye said she was “humbled and honored” that voters -- it would appear -- have opted to return her to the Desert Hot Springs City Council.

“We haven’t had this kind of consistent progress since I’ve been living here, and I’ve lived her for 14 years,” she said, adding that the power of Desert Hot Springs lies with its residents, not the City Council.

A financial analyst, Pye said she will put those skills to work for Desert Hot Springs.

“I will watch the dollars. How we spend them. Why we spend them,” she said. “That’s what I bring to the table.”

Upon learning of the early results at 8:30 p.m., mayoral challenger Betts didn't admit defeat, but his optimism was a bit shaken.

"We're not ready to concede yet but it doesn't look good," he said from his election night gathering at the Spa Restaurant, at the Desert Hot Springs Spa Hotel, 10-805 Palm Drive. "We needed the absentee ballots. There would have to be a huge push to win now."

Betts said that he hopes to win but if he doesn't he at least discussed issues, such as the parcel tax, that are significant to the city.

In other results, over 70% of voters have voted to approve the Palm Springs telephone tax, and with half of the ten precincts reporting as of 11:20 p.m., 56% voted to approve the Coachella utility tax.

Stay with mydesert.com all evening for the latest election news.

1 News front
0 Home