Ontonia Council Candidate Falls Behind by 16 Votes After FBI Search
Michael Rios overtook Alan Wapner in the District 3 race Friday, reversing a lead that had held through the night.
By Lucas Sheridan ·
Michael Rios, a software engineer and small business owner, moved into the lead in the Ontario City Council District 3 race on Friday. He gained the top spot as vote counting continued following Tuesday’s General Election. The shift placed Rios 16 votes ahead of incumbent Alan Wapner, who had held a larger margin earlier in the week.
Results published Friday evening by the San Bernardino County Registrar of Voters show Rios with 2,949 votes, representing 29.56% of the total. Wapner trails with 2,933 votes, or 29.4%. This reverses the situation from Thursday night, when Wapner led by 85 votes. County officials expect counting to continue over the next several days, which could further alter the margin.
The contest has drawn intense attention since Wapner switched his primary goal from mayor to the City Council seat. The change followed an FBI search of his home this summer. Subsequent records revealed that Wapner billed the Ontario International Airport Authority, where he served on the board, for $184,997 in travel reimbursements. Those costs covered 72 trips taken between March 2021 and June 2026. It remains unclear whether the spending is connected to the federal investigation.
Wapner defended the expenses in an email sent last month. He stated that his travel was necessary for him to be effective in his position. Financial disclosures also indicate that Wapner earned nearly a quarter of a million dollars from 2017 through 2026 for attending airport board meetings. That figure is four times higher than what most other board members received for the same service. No charges have been filed against Wapner or other individuals whose properties were searched.
In a separate close race in the Inland Empire, Riverside City Council Ward 2 candidate Gracie Torres saw her lead shrink. She now leads Aram Ayra by 87 votes with 50.77% of the count. That margin is down from the 51.12% lead she held on Thursday night. Ayra currently holds 49.23% of the counted ballots in that district.
