Early election returns show incumbent Todd Gloria leading the San Diego mayor’s race and Deputy City Attorney Heather Ferbert leading the race for city attorney. Gloria, a Democrat, leads challenger Larry Turner, an independent, in a battle that has focused on the mayor’s track record during his first term, Turner’s relative lack of experience and their differing approaches to homelessness. Ferbert leads Assemblymember Brian Maienschein, a fellow Democrat, in a race marked by stark contrasts. Ferbert is a longtime municipal lawyer and political novice, while Maienschein is a longtime politician who hasn’t practiced much law. “I think it was pretty straightforward — it was the experience,” Ferbert said just after the polls closed. “I think it shows the voters want a city attorney who is a practicing attorney.” She also said it shows voters want a city attorney who will be a check and balance on the mayor and the city council. In two City Council races, incumbents are leading in early returns. Stephen Whitburn held a wide lead over challenger Coleen Cusack in central urban District 3, and Sean Elo-Rivera led Terry Hoskins in mid-city District 9. Only twice since 1992 has a San Diego City Council incumbent been defeated in a run for re-election. The races for mayor and city attorney had been flooded by outside money from independent expenditure committees in the days leading up to the election, leading to a last-minute rush of TV ads and mailers in both. In the city’s top-ticket race, voters have been faced with deciding whether San Diego is on the right track to solving its biggest challenges under Gloria or needs a political newcomer like Turner to get it there. Gloria says he’s making major progress on homelessness, the housing crisis and repairing city crumbling infrastructure. He says those problems can be solved if voters give him four more years. Turner, a city police officer and former U.S. Marine, says that Gloria has failed on those and other issue and is more focused on his next job in politics than actually solving San Diego’s problems. San Diego mayoral candidate Larry Turner votes in Ocean Beach on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune) Gloria, who served eight years on the City Council and four in the state Assembly before becoming mayor, says voters should choose his experience over Turner’s notable lack of it. Turner doesn’t dispute his own lack of political experience but points to leadership roles and executive-style positions he says he held in the military. Turner has harshly criticized Gloria on homelessness, contending he hasn’t done enough to solve the problem. But he also criticizes the most prominent efforts the mayor has made, including a crackdown on encampments and a proposal for a nearly 1,000-bed shelter near the airport. Gloria says the ban has slashed the number of tents downtown by 82%, citing it as one of many moves he’s made to address homelessness. Others include the city’s first coordinated street outreach teams[ and his work successfully lobbying to expand mental health conservatorships. Gloria says Turner offers no solutions, only complaints.   Fundraising in the race took a major turn in September when Turner got a boost from a local lawyer’s $1 million donation to a pro-business political group that is supporting him. Gloria’s supporters then fought back, and a committee called “San Diegans for Fairness Supporting Todd Gloria for Mayor & Stephen Whitburn for Council 2024” quickly raised more than $800,000. Gloria, 46, lives in Little Italy. Turner, 54, lives in Ocean Beach. The battle for city attorney is a rematch of a closely-fought two-person primary, and it has focused largely on the record of termed-out City Attorney Mara Elliott, who has endorsed Ferbert. San Diego city attorney candidate Heather Ferbert, center, watches the returns come in at The Local on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024 in San Diego, California. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune) Ferbert says she will continue to lead the 170-lawyer office in much the same way Elliott has the last eight years. Maienschein says dramatic changes are needed on transparency, how property deals are negotiated and what he calls a “chaos” leadership style that has featured dueling news conferences and criticism of other officials. Maienschein was endorsed by most of the establishment — the county Democratic Party, the mayor, most members of the San Diego City Council and several members of the state Legislature. Ferbert wasn’t endorsed by many local politicians. But she was endorsed by the vast majority of local bar associations, which she says highlights that she’s more qualified for the job.