There is an old saying that close only counts in horseshoes and drive-in movies, a lesson learned rather painfully on Tuesday evening by San Marino resident Cole Harris, who finished third in the two-candidate race for Lieutenant Governor in the California State primary election.
With more than 99% of precincts reporting, Harris, a Republican, was in third place behind Democrats Eleni Kounalakis and Ed Hernandez. Harris garnered 698,153, good for 18.3% while Kounalakis received 23.4% of the votes with 891,964. Ed Hernandez took the second spot with 790,039 votes, or 20.8%. Harris was the clear third choice as Jeff Bleich was the fourth choice among the eleven candidates, picking up 354,665, or 9.3% of votes cast for the office. Only two candidates advance to the November election regardless of party preference under new election guidelines.
Harris exuded a positive attitude about the process on Wednesday morning when reached at his home.
“Cindy and I are forever grateful to the hundreds of thousands of California voters that put their trust in our campaign,” Harris said. “While we are disappointed that we fell just short of advancing to the general election, we could not be more proud of the campaign, our team and the hundreds of volunteers across the state that gave their time, energy and effort to join our cause. I’m humbled by the support.”
Harris was a late entry into the fray, announcing his candidacy in March. Shortly thereafter, he turned heads by receiving the official endorsement of the California Republican Party at its convention in San Diego.
“As a first time candidate, I appreciated the opportunity to meet so many new people, including the other candidates vying for this office,” Harris continued. “My commitment to a better California does not end today and I look forward to working with all who seek to improve our country, our state and our communities in the months and years ahead.”
When asked about any future political aspirations, Harris told The Tribune he would “look at something going forward but for right now, I am just going to digest this experience.”
Harris is a Foundation Board Member of Arcadia Methodist Hospital and an active Board Member of the International Leadership Foundation, which helps high school and college students with internships and government positions nationwide.
Locally, he is active in the San Marino Schools Foundation and coaches youth baseball and basketball. Harris is the CEO and Chairman of Capital Stone Holdings, Inc., which invests globally in businesses and real estate. Cole and Cindy Harris have two sons, Dylan and Dax.
On Tuesday morning, Cole and Cindy Harris accompanied Cindy’s father, Calvin Chen, to the Scout House in San Marino where Chen voted for the first time as an American citizen. Tragically, Calvin Chen passed away early Wednesday morning at Methodist Hospital.
“We are dealing with a lot of things here,” Cole Harris said, his voice expressing the enormity of the occasion.
