Paul Gaspar to Run for Encinitas Mayor

ENCINITAS, CA — A familiar name has entered the race for Encinitas mayor this November.

Paul Gaspar, the husband of current Encinitas Mayor Kristin Gaspar, has announced his candidacy for the office.

Kristin's two-year term as mayor ends this December, and she is running for the San Diego County Board of Supervisors after beating Escondido Mayor Sam Abed in the June primary in her bid to unseat incumbent District 3 Supervisor Dave Roberts.

• Roberts, Gaspar Lead Race for District 3 Supervisor

“While Kristin’s recent primary campaign election results showed that Encinitans want her to be our next county supervisor, I have become concerned that Encinitas may lose its way without her brand of steady leadership and focus on citizens’ priorities," said Paul, in a news release announcing his candidacy.

"I will continue her stable, common-sense approach to governing utilizing my effective communication skills and temperament, focusing on the core services citizens expect, and rejecting partisan politics and agendas that have too often infected our city government.

"In addition, I will continue to reshape the culture of City Hall, fostering an environment of mutual respect, professional dialogue and excellence.”

Paul, a doctor of physical therapy and board-certified cardiovascular and pulmonary clinical specialist, has served as president of Gaspar Doctors of Physical Therapy for 22 years, growing it from one office to seven.

He says his leadership experience includes serving as a director of several state and national physical therapy, health care and community associations and organizations. He was recognized with the American Physical Therapy Association’s State Government Affairs Award, and was recently nominated for the Dicus Award, a national honor given to a physical therapist in private practice.

“I am prepared to bring the same level of success to Encinitas, the city I love and where I will live for the rest of my life,” Paul said.

Kristin, who in 2014 became the city’s first mayor directly elected by the people, expressed her support for her husband’s candidacy.

“I could not leave the city in any better hands,” Kristin said. “Paul has followed city issues very closely over the past six years and will continue to bring Encinitas together and deliver what citizens expect — a high level of competence and common sense, staying focused on local priorities.”

The candidate filing period for the Nov. 8 Encinitas municipal election opened Monday and closes Aug. 12.

Encinitas voters will elect a mayor for a two-year term, as well as four City Council members. The terms of Deputy Mayor Lisa Shaffer, Councilman Tony Kranz and Councilman Mark Muir expire this year. Councilwoman Catherine Blakespear, whose four-year term does not end until 2018, announced in March her intention to run for mayor this year, opening a fourth council seat.

“I’m running to be your next mayor because Encinitas deserves a leader with a clear vision for our future, and the skills to get us there,” Blakespear says on her website. “As former deputy mayor, current Encinitas City Council member, a practicing attorney, fourth-generation Encinitas resident and parent of two school-age children, I have the right combination of background, experience and temperament to lead our city.”

Planning Commissioner Tasha Boerner Horvath has announced her intention to run for one of the council seats.

“On the Encinitas City Council, I will strike the right balance, turn ideas into action and work hard for all of Encinitas, just like I've done on the Planning Commission, with Paul Ecke Central Elementary School traffic and the city-wide safe routes to school initiative,” Boerner Horvath says on her website. “We need to refocus on our community by providing even better access to city government and balancing the important interests in our city."

Shaffer has said she will not run for office again, while Kranz has said he will. It is not clear whether Muir will seek re-election.

For the upcoming election only, the city approved designating one council seat to a two-year term to evenly stagger the election of council members due to the establishment of an elected mayor in the 2014 election. The candidate who receives the least votes in the November election will serve a two-year term. In the event of a tie for second place, the two-year term seat will decided by lot.

Encinitas voters will also be asked to approve a housing element.

More information about the city’s upcoming municipal election is available on the city’s website.