these are union folks and one of the candidates was sheriff lori smith. we have video, smith made an appearance earlier congratulating her many supporters, posing for selfies and she was sorry optimistic, not necessarily claiming victory but we can report with about 43% of the vote in right now smith has a fairly commanding lead over challenger john here at kawa. 56 to 42% with about 43% of the vote in. we did manage to catch the sheriff or comment. she is not declaring victory but here's what she had to say about how the campaign went and how she is feeling tonight. >> i'm feeling optimistic, i'm feeling guardedly optimistic. this is my sixth election. i hope that it will go well. i trust the voters in santa clara county. we have a smart electorate and i hope they make the right choice tonight. we ran a really good campaign. we had so many volunteers and i think we ran a really good campaign. i'm proud of what we have done. >> reporter: what was the message you wanted to get across? >> i think the message was actually focused on the experts and the great

that has now shifted to a celebration for lori smith. >> reporter: well, that's right. in santa clara county, in will not be a new sheriff in town. the mood changed quickly here in south san jose. the incumbent sheriff and supporters began a cautious celebration. butt smith ju but smith jumped out to a substantial lead, and the sheriff was able to relax. >> well, i'm very optimistic now. i think that the lead is insurmountable at this point. we had a great team in place, and i'm really pleased that the voters of santa clara county selected me. >> reporter: smith's challenger, her former second command, had a thank you event for his supporters in campbell. prior to the first returns, he said he plans to remain active on the issues he campaigned on. >> well, i think that i would still be an advocate for change. still being an advocate for use of force, racial profiling, and the reforms that need to occur in the jail. >> reporter: well, sheriff smith, who is still here celebrating, says jail reforms, homelessness, and how to deal with mental health issues will be her prior

long time five time incumbent sheriff lori smith is facing a strong challenge from undersheriff john hirakawa. this has been a very rough and tumble campaign. jail reform is among the key issues for santa clara county sheriff. we'll watch those two races closely as they develop throughout the night. obviously here the party has yet to begin. reporting live in santa clara, len ramirez, kpix5. >> thank you. don't forget to stay with us tonight as the results roll in. we'll bring you live results and analysis all evening. it starts at 8:00 with our special election night live stream on our website www.kpix.com. >>> we learned a smoldering fire at a bay area recycling center won't be completely out for hours. it's already taken all day for the smoke to clear out. it started about 1:00 this morning at the recology plant in brisbane. apparently construction debris was ignited. fire crews quickly were on scene putting water on it for hours, but the smoke kept billowing out of the building. >> and it's really a smoke event and now the smoke turned white a good while ago, so it's really steam

al alguacil lori smith debido a los escándalos de abuso sexual y muertes fue una de las contiendas más reñidas >>> en la contienda por superintendente de las escuelas públicas por california se ha puesto en la cabeza marcial que nació en el área servido como s en distritos escolares, su contrincante es un asambleísta que reside >>> y los californianos decidieron otros puestos importantes, por ejemplo la contienda entre alex secretario de estado favorece a padilla con 71 . 7%, mark alcanza el 38.3 por ciento al >>> el fiscal general de california javier becerra se mantiene en el puesto con el 70.8 por ciento supera al republicano steven que logra hasta por ahora 39.2 por ciento >>> mientras que en la carrera para senador federal por el estado de california, la senadora demócrata vence al demócrata de león >>> esto sería la quinta reelección de la senadora >>> con una cómoda ventaja desde temprano la senadora dijo a sus partidarios que el honor más grande de su vida, poder servir y representar a california, recordemos que ella ha estado 26 años en elsenado y algunos decían

and in santa clara county, lori smith is headed to a 6th term as sheriff. her challengershiff conceded lae election day. the polls closed at, but l 11:00 p.m. nbc bay area is at the registrar's office where it will take a while to count all those ballots. anoushah. >> reporter: these seasonal workers are working long shifts to open, sort, and tally the vote by mail ballots that came in here. many will work graveyard shifts through november 9th to get it all done. election day is over, but seasonal workers at santa clara county's registrar of voters in san jose still have tons to do. after a record-breaking voter turnout in the county. >> we did have an unanticipated surge in conditional voter registration participants. >> reporter: that surge looked like this. nbc bay area showed you the long lines out the door and around th registrar last night. and those crowds were still there more than an hour after the polls closed. laura hanson was the last person in line to vote in san jose. >> i had witnesses to prove that i was here in time. >> reporter: all the vo

some opponents raise questions about how santa clara sheriff lori smith sought out endorsements. was it improper? >>> no longer fearless. an iconic sculpture is transformed to send a powerful message. >>> all that's ahead. first what's coming up next on jimmy kimmel live. >> on tonight's show, we say so many words. how many games in a row would the lakers have to lose for you to unretire, for you to come back to the team? it's "gaming with america's best internet provider" internet. just any internet. it's "all your teenagers streaming at once" internet. it's "i can get up to one-two-three-four-five mobile lines included" internet. it's internet from xfinity that makes your life... simple. easy. awesome. get a special offer on xfinity internet and tv for $35 each a month for 12 months when you bundle both, and ask how you can save on your wireless bill when you include xfinity mobile click, call or visit a store today. >>> to real fireworks in the santa clara county sheriffs race with the election next week. sheriff laurie smith's opponents are raising questions about how how she

some opponents raise questions about how santa clara sheriff lori smith sought out endorsements. was it improper? >>> no longer fearless. an iconic sculpture is transformed to send a powerful message. >>> all that's ahead. first what's coming up next on jimmy kimmel live. >> on tonight's show, we say so many words. how many games in a row would the lakers have to lose for you to unretire, for you to come to unretire, for you to come back to the team? ♪i am beautiful in every single way♪ ♪words, can't bring me down♪ just sit back, relax and let us entertain you... ...with over 3,500 channels of entertainment, including the latest movies and box sets from around the world. ( ♪ ) we even have live sports and news channels. ( ♪ ) and your free wi-fi will start shortly. enjoy your flight mr. jones. world's best inflight entertainment. fly emirates. fly better. world's best inflight entertainment. it's "gaming with america's best internet provider" internet. just any internet. it's "all your teenagers streaming at once" internet. it's "i can get up to one-two-three-four-fiv

current sheriff lori smith facing her first general election in 20 years. retired under sheriff john hirokawa in the last few years, smith has been faced with several big controversies, including a jail inmate hunger strike and two guards convicted of the death of an inmate. san jose pulled its endorsement over what it calls his underwhelming response to a racist text scandal that resurfaced during the election. >>> let's talk about the race for mayor in oakland. incumbent libby schaaf could be the first oakland mayor since jerry brown to serve two terms. but don't rule out the possibility of a major upset. the city used its rank choice voting and allows voters to rank up to three candidates in order of preference. several other candidates are vying for her job. among them, activist cat brooks. another candidate, civil rights attorney, pamela price. political newcomer and oakland native marshon tapman is another contender. >>> and be sure to tune into "today in the bay" after the election for the latest results and analysis of all the races locally and nati

smith and her challenger. here is more on that. >> we've been undergoing a broad transformation. >> voters decide whether to reelect smith to a sixth term spanning more than 20 years in the job. her opponent is democrat who 132% of the vote in the primary, forcing a runoff with smith who captured 43%. both have their supporters within the department says political analyst terry christiansen. >> sheriff deputies have endorsed the opponent and spent a lot of money. the corrections office has spent a lot of money on her campaign. >> i'm running for county sheriff. >> before he retired two years ago, he was second-in-command, emerging as the dominant issue in the campaign in the wake of the 2015 death of mentally ill inmate michael kiley. three jail guards were later convicted of his murder. >> there is a lot of tension there between them. there is also a lot of finger- pointing between them. they kind of lost in the weeds of who said what and when rather than focusing on what they will do to reform the jails. bot

voters in santa clara are deciding whether to reelect sheriff lorie smith, whether to pass a housing measure in san jose. there are statewide propositions, governors and senate race. they are scrambling to register a long line so they can vote before 8:00 tonight. >> we always help every voter in line by 8:00. we will continue processing all of them until they're done. >> reporter: these are people late in registering or because they have to do a change of address? >> the greatest amount of portion of these people in line are people not registered and who are registering in santa clara county today so they can vote today. >> reporter: volunteers have also been busy on the phone to get out the vote. this is a phone bank at the county's gop headquarters. immigrant rights groups have been canvassing door-to-door to mobilize latino voters. we are just over an hour away from the closing of the polls. that means we will have the first results right after 8:00. live in san jose, david louie, "abc 7 news". >>> thanks, david. even if you are not registered to vote, you can still have your voi