SCOTTS VALLEY >> Monica Martinez held a double-digit lead Wednesday against opponent Christopher Bradford in the race for the 5th District Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors seat.

As of the latest results Wednesday, Martinez had garnered 11,017 votes or 56% while Bradford took in 8,509 votes or 43% — a gap of 2,508 votes.

“I’m really happy with the strong start. There’s still a lot of votes left to count and it’s really important that every vote is counted,” Martinez told the Sentinel while taking a break from her election-night watch party at Bruno’s Bar and Grill in Scotts Valley. “It feels good to be the frontrunner for now and we’re going to keep staying up all night watching the results roll in and hoping for the best.”

While there are still plenty of ballots left to be counted, Martinez’s lead continues with a trend from the March primary election where she and Bradford were the top two finishers and advanced to a November runoff after both failed to collect more than 50% of the overall vote.

Martinez finished with 7,849 votes in March, or 46%, while Bradford received 3,619 votes, or 21%. The two other candidates in that election who failed to qualify for the runoff — Theresa Ann Bond and Tom Decker — collectively received 5,344 votes from 5th District residents in March.

“I’m feeling pretty good. We’re at a competitive level — it’s not at a blowout level with the early voting — and we anticipated a big chunk of the electorate that supports us is going to break in person,” Bradford told the Sentinel Tuesday night. The first set of tabulated ballots released Tuesday were overwhelmingly vote by mail ballots, according to the county’s election website. “Of course, I’d love for us to be ahead right off the bat, but we’re close enough.”

Both November hopefuls are aiming to replace Supervisor Bruce McPherson, who announced he will retire at the end of his current term after holding the 5th District seat for 12 years. McPherson previously endorsed Martinez as his successor.

Martinez, 42, has been CEO of Encompass Community Services, the largest community-based nonprofit in the county, since 2014 and has worked in the behavioral health and homeless services for decades.

Martinez said if she wins election to the county board, she will resign from Encompass and the board at the nonprofit is prepared for that possibility.

Bradford, 45, is a small business owner, Boulder Creek resident and community organizer whose home was destroyed during the 2020 CZU Lightning Complex Fire. Bradford has credited the devastating event and slow recovery in the San Lorenzo Valley as motivation for him seeking a leadership position in local government.

The 5th District, home to about 52,000 residents according to 2020 census data, includes the San Lorenzo Valley, Scotts Valley and a small portion of Santa Cruz.

Martinez and Bradford are competing for a full, four-year term on the nonpartisan county board.

According to the county elections website Wednesday, 35,000 vote by mail ballots were received on Election Day along with 3,700 same-day registrations and 130 provisional ballots.

According to county Clerk Tricia Webber, the 81,354 tabulated vote-by-mail ballots included those received through last Sunday, and the 15,132 in person voting ballots included those submitted on Election Day and during the early voting period.