The Sentinel at 6:42 p.m. today, November 5, was notified that “hundreds” of California State University Students were casting provisional ballots at the polling precinct located at the CalState Alumni Center.
The clear insinuation contained in the report was that the lion’s share of those voting at that precinct are students, many of whom are not registered to vote in San Bernardino. Most of those voting at the Alumni Center, it was said, are Democrats.
Running in the Fifth Ward in today’s November 5 race, are Kim Knaus and Henry Nickel, the two-top finishers in the March Primary. Both outdistanced the incumbent Ward 5 councilman, Ben Reynoso, who defeated Nickel in a run-off in 2024. Nickel held the Ward 5 post since 2014, when he prevailed in a special election following the 2013 resignation of then-Councilman Chas Kelley. Nickel, a Republican, was reelected in 2015 and had his term expanded to 2020 when the city switched to even-year elections.
Nickel was the top vote-getter in the 2020 primary election, but was defeated when Reynoso, a Democrat activist, cleverly moved to register Cal State San Bernardino students prior to the November 2020-run-off election. Though local elections in California are by law non-partisan, in San Bernardino County, party affiliation is a major factor in virtually all elections.
This year, Knaus, who secured stronger Democratic Party backing than did Reynoso, was able to achieve a first-place finish in the primary, while Nickel, pulling much of the traditional GOP vote, managed to capture second.
It appears that Knaus has now taken a leaf out of Reynoso’s book, and is seeking to solidify her lead in the Fifth Ward by nailing down the college student vote.
CalState San Bernardino lies within San Benardino’s Fifth Ward. The campus includes multiple dormatories.