County Supervisors Chairwoman Nora Vargas announces she will not serve her second term

San Diego County Executive Nora Vargas has announced her decision to step down from the board at the end of her term on January 6, 2025.

“For reasons of personal safety, I will not take the oath of office for a second term,” she said in a statement Friday.

Vargas won re-election to the District 1 seat in November. Received 62% of votes. The district includes Imperial Beach, Chula Vista, National City and San Ysidro.

Vargas’ office did not respond to requests for further details about the safety concerns. Public records show the county paid more than $38,000 for Allstate Security services for Vargas for a month in October.

A spokesman for the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office said in an email that there were “no known or active threats against Chairwoman Vargas or any of the county supervisors.”

“In recent years, we have seen an increase in controversial public gatherings and overall less civility,” they wrote. “Some of these interactions extend to threatening behavior and criminal behavior. We are thoroughly investigating these incidents and taking appropriate action.”

County Board of Supervisors meetings have become increasingly rowdy in recent years, and Vargas called for a recess as recently as Dec. 10 because a person in the gallery yelled during a contentious public speech about immigration policy.

Earlier this year, a This was the result of a study by the University of San Diego Nearly 70% of female elected officials in San Diego, Imperial and Riverside counties reported threats and harassment.

“46 percent of the women we surveyed said they were considering leaving public service as a direct result of the threats and harassment,” said Rachel Locke, an author of the report. “In comparison, that’s about 39% of men.”

Locke said the type of harassment women experience also varies.

“Women tend to be harassed or threatened in ways that are much more about their appearance, their family, and in ways that have much stronger sexual undertones,” she said.

Despite the frequent heated arguments at the meetings, Vargas said she was proud of the work she did.

“My proudest accomplishments include leading disaster relief and recovery efforts, addressing the complexities of the pandemic, and driving systemic change so that our government serves all members of our community, not just a select few,” Vargas said in her statement.

Vargas was elected to the board in 2020, replacing former Supervisor Greg Cox on January 4, 2021. She is the first Latina to serve on the board.

She succeeded then-Supervisor Nathan Fletcher as board chair after he resigned amid scandal.

Vargas has been away from the board several times this year for unknown reasons and has struggled with health issues stemming from nodules on her vocal cords.

What happens next isn’t entirely clear since she won’t be sworn into the board in January. The two Democrats and two Republicans remaining on the board could find it difficult to approve an interim candidate for Vargas’ seat, which could lead to early elections in 2025.

“I greatly appreciate Chairwoman Vargas’ service to the county and our community and hope that she finds a solution to the challenges she is facing,” Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer said in a statement. “As Vice Chairman of the County Board of Supervisors, I can assure you that the work and new direction of the County will continue to move forward.”