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Vang Inches Closer to Outright Fresno Council Victory
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By David Taub, Senior Reporter
Published 3 weeks ago on
March 26, 2025

Brandon Vang (right) increases his vote percentage in the Fresno City Council District 5 special election to 50.16% in the Wednesday, March 26, 2025 recount. Elizabeth Jonasson Rosas has 34.98%. (GV Wire Composite/Paul Marshall)

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Brandon Vang has nearly clinched the southeast seat on the Fresno City Council.

Fresno County Clerk/Registrar of Voters James Kus updated the results on Wednesday, adding 42 votes in the March 18 special election for District 5.

Vang, a Sanger Unified trustee, remains above the majority mark with 50.16% of the vote. He is eight votes over.

Fresno Unified trustee Elizabeth Jonasson Rosas is in second place with 34.98% of the vote.

If Vang’s margin holds, a runoff election won’t be necessary. He could be sworn in on April 10.

However, if his total falls below a majority, Vang and Jonasson Rosas will meet in a July 15 winner-take-all election.

“We feel very positive that we will avoid a runoff,” Vang’s campaign manager Pedro Ramirez said.

Said Jonasson Rosas: “We need to count every vote.”

The special election was to fill the seat vacated by Luis Chavez after he won election to the Fresno County Board of Supervisors. He is married to Jonasson Rosas.

The next update will be Friday, April 4 — the date Kus is required to certify the election.

Few Votes Remain

The only remaining votes to count are cured signature ballots. Kus reported that about 130 such ballots remain. He said nine ballots have been cured since the previous update.

Voters with ballot signature problems have until April 2 to fix the issue. These include not signing the ballot or a signature that doesn’t match what is on file.

Both campaigns have a list of voters whose ballots will not be counted unless they “cure” by the deadline.

Ramirez said the Vang campaign reached out to several of those voters, and anticipate the votes will be in their favor.

Jonasson Rosas’ only chance to force a runoff is to add more cured ballots to her column than Vang does. She said her campaign will discuss the next steps, including a possible recount bid.

Nonprofit leader Jose Leon Barraza is third with 11.9%; Paul Condon in fourth with 2.31%; and write-in candidate Nickolas Wildstar has 0.24%.

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David Taub,
Senior Reporter
Curiosity drives David Taub. The award-winning journalist might be shy, but feels mighty with a recorder in his hand. He doesn't see it his job to "hold public officials accountable," but does see it to provide readers (and voters) the information needed to make intelligent choices. Taub has been honored with several writing awards from the California News Publishers Association. He's just happy to have his stories read. Joining GV Wire in 2016, Taub covers politics, government and elections, mainly in the Fresno/Clovis area. He also writes columns about local eateries (Appetite for Fresno), pro wrestling (Off the Bottom Rope), and media (Media Man). Prior to joining the online news source, Taub worked as a radio producer for KMJ and PowerTalk 96.7 in Fresno. He also worked as an assignment editor for KCOY-TV in Santa Maria, California, and KSEE-TV in Fresno. He has also worked behind the scenes for several sports broadcasts, including the NCAA basketball tournament, and the Super Bowl. When not spending time with his family, Taub loves to officially score Fresno Grizzlies games. Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, Taub is a die-hard Giants and 49ers fan. He graduated from the University of Michigan with dual degrees in communications and political science. Go Blue! You can contact David at 559-492-4037 or at Send an Email

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