Voters Select Whitman Over Calif. Commissioner Poizner, Reject Prop. 17

Republican Meg Whitman will face off against Democrat Jerry Brown in the race for California governor in November. Whitman won the Republican ticket for governor with 64.2 percent of the vote, defeating Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner who received 26.9 percent of the vote in yesterday’s June primary, according to the Secretary of State.

In the race for Insurance Commissioner, Dave Jones received 61.2 percent of the vote, defeating Hector De La Torre, who received 38.8 percent of the vote. That means Democrat Jones will most likely run against Republican Brian Fitzgerald for the elected office in November. Fitzgerald received 50.4 percent of the vote over Mike Villines’ 49.6 percent, according to the Secretary of State, although Villines has yet to concede the election.

The highly controversial ballot measure Prop. 17, also known as the “Continuous Discount Initiative” was voted down, with the 52.1 percent of voters selecting “no,” and 47.9 percent voting “yes,” according to the Secretary of State. This means insurers can provide discounts to their long-term automobile insurance customers, but will continue to be prohibited from providing such discounts to new customers switching from other insurers. Californians for Fair Auto Insurance Rates, of which Mercury Insurance was a supporter, said if the measure had passed, drivers would have been able to save up to $250 by eliminating a surcharge for changing insurance companies. If passed, Prop. 17 would have allowed insured drivers to take continuous coverage discounts with them if they change insurers, just like good driver discounts.

“Voters missed an opportunity to extend an auto insurance discount that could have lowered auto insurance rates for millions of drivers,” said Mike D’Arelli, executive director, Alliance of Insurance Agents & Brokers. The Alliance, along with independent insurance agents statewide, strongly supported Prop. 17. “There is no doubt that extending the continuous coverage discount would have improved current auto law for consumers.”

For more election results, visit http://vote.sos.ca.gov/.