Will Rodriguez-Kennedy was elected chair of the San Diego County Democratic Party on Tuesday in an emotional Zoom meeting of the party’s Central Committee.
Rodriguez-Kennedy, who stepped aside as party leader in May 2022 amid sex-assault allegations, defeated former South Area Vice Chair Sara Ochoa 37-27. Three votes went to last-minute candidate Lori Saldaña.
No charges were brought in the case, and a lawsuit by Rodriguez-Kennedy’s former boyfriend was dropped.
A half-hour into the meeting, San Diego City Council member Marni von Wilpert — already a state Senate candidate in District 40 — said she was “strongly considering” a race to unseat GOP Rep. Darrell Issa in the 48th Congressional District.
Becca Taylor was elected chair in January 2023 to succeed Rodriguez-Kennedy after he stepped down. Taylor lost her life in a motorcycle crash in July 2024.
Taylor was succeeded by Kyle Krahel-Frolander (who quit the chair role to run for county supervisor in the North County) and then by Ross Pike, who ran Tuesday night’s 3-hour meeting.
- Audio: Opening statements from Democratic Party chair candidates
- Audio: Central Committee members question three chair candidates
- Audio: Three supporters each promote chair candidates not in room
- Audio: Election results told and comments from three chair candidates
After defeating a motion to delay by a month the chair election (by a vote of 51-16), all three candidates made opening and closing statements and took questions.
Then, with the rivals put into a waiting room, the Central Committee debated their merits.
Pike warned against any negativity or offenders would be muted. He didn’t have to — although members cited anonymous hit letters and “Trumpian tactics.” Some implored members not to abstain from voting, but some didn’t click a choice.
In her opening statement, Saldaña said: “The Democratic party will not succeed if we adopt the same tactics as the people that we are trying to defeat.”
Referring to Pike, she later said: “I realized that the chair runs a very tight ship and he silences people very quickly when we speak out of turn. So the only way to speak in turn is as a candidate.”
- May 7, 2022: Chair of County Democratic Party Takes Leave Over Assault Claim
- Sept. 23, 2022: Party Leader Counters Rape Claim: Sex Audio Indicates ‘Max Consent’
- Jan. 5, 2023: Taylor Unchallenged for San Diego Dem Chair as Leader Bows
- July 31, 2024: Former Dem Chair Tells Exoneration From Sex Assault Accusation
- June 8, 2025: Democratic drama: Three possible rivals for San Diego party chair
Ochoa said she was running to transform the party.
“Not alone by myself, but with you,” she said. “Our community is looking for steady leadership that does not cower to the pressure of the most powerful, that speaks the truth and love that shows up in the streets.”
And she would lead by example “of how we can navigate political spaces … making amends when we fall short, turning the other cheek — then extending an olive branch.”
Rodriguez-Kennedy, 38, cited his earlier term as chair, beginning in 2019.
“We made amazing progress,” he said. “We flipped the county Board of Supervisors from red to blue for the first time in modern history.”
The South Bronx native and Marine veteran referenced his current job as an aide to Rep. Scott Peters — a defense and veterans affairs field representative.
“My job is to fight government agencies in order to get benefits for our veterans and military service members,” he said, adding that he’s “a member of the Latino and African diaspora.”
On Aug. 11, county Supervisor Monica Montgomery Steppe sent a letter to Central Committee members that appeared to slam Rodriguez-Kennedy without naming him.
“Relying on references to the historical pain of oppressed people is not a politically astute strategy,” she wrote.
“The Democratic Party has historically failed to prioritize the authenticity and lived history of Black Americans, yet party leaders continue to leverage our pain for political advancement.”
Eight questions were posed to all candidates, including what they would do for the Black community, how they’d win back votes lost to Trump in 2024 and how they’d make the party more transparent.
Omar Hashimi asked if Israel’s invasion of Gaza was a genocide.
Palestine-visitor Saldaña wouldn’t say, except to note “genocide has a legal definition.” Rodriguez-Kennedy, boasting that he “stepped foot in a war zone,” said it was clear Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had engaged in war crimes — but didn’t label the Jewish state’s actions genocide.
Only Ochoa declared: “It is a genocide.” She grew tearful as she noted the loss of children in Gaza and the fact she’s the only candidate who is a mother.
Former party chair Francine Busby asked each candidate to tell, in one sentence, the “core mission” of the local Democratic Party.
Rodriguez-Kennedy spoke of “recruiting, electing and supporting candidates.” Ochoa said it was to “be the vehicle for the change we deserve.” Saldaña said she didn’t have a one-sentence answer but listed “provide people with leaders to solve problems,” “make our lives better” and noted the backlog of rape kits to be tested.
After the meeting, Saldaña sent me a note, saying she nominated herself to “avoid a colloquy between two people, and also to make sure we discussed additional topics.”
Among them: the need for more party transparency on finances and its so-far undisclosed audit.
“Seeing the party finance reports is our right, and understanding them is our responsibility as Central Committee members,” she wrote. “It should not be overly complicated or burdensome to request a review of the reports. (I made a verbal request during the controller report, and was told to submit it via email!)
“As for the audit — initiated in late 2023: It has become a bit like the Epstein files: Talked about by many for years, but never released for actual review.”
Acting chair Ross Pike 
Lori Saldaña, chair candidate 
Malik Thornton sworn in. 
Cori Schumacher of Carlsbad 
Bryan Pease of San Diego 
Councilwoman Mari von Wilpert 
Shanna Ezzell, Assembly deputy chief of staff 
Ryan Darsey, party secretary 
Nicole Crosby, D4 council candidate 
Lauren Bier, party ethics committee 
Indroneal Banerjee, director of clubs
In the end, after Pike read the resuts, the candidates saluted voters and each other.
“I want to thank Sara for a spirited campaign,” Rodriguez-Kennedy said. “I look forward to working with you, continually moving on. … I will work until I can’t work anymore.”
Saldaña conceded “some rough spots” early in the race and urged “anyone who participated in sending out those anonymous messages” to “please step up, speak up. … We are fighting existential threats to many of our neighbors.”
Ochoa said: “I believe in all you guys. I think that we do need to be able to speak the truth in love.”
“There were some things that I felt we weren’t allowed to say, but … we gotta find a way to find that balance better because if we don’t make space to tell our truths, then it comes out in the consternation and tension between us and anonymous letters.”
Ochoa concluded: “I’m still here and I wish Will and this committee all the best — and I’m still in this thing.”
