Noreen Evans wins endorsement
of Napa democrats

BY JULIE JOHNSON
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

Monday, May 10, 2010

NAPA — Job growth dominated the speeches Thursday night in Napa by candidates for State Sen. Pat Wiggins' seat in Sacramento.

At the first forum where voters could meet the candidates together, held at Napa Valley College, three of the four people hoping to win the 2nd District seat told a live web audience and about 30 people gathered in a lecture hall how they would bring more work to the six counties served by the office.

Assemblywoman Noreen Evans, former Sonoma Mayor Joanne Sanders and Sonoma County Planning Commissioner Tom Lynch took part in the forum designed to win the endorsement of the Democrats of Napa Valley. David Rosas, a Roseland School District board member also running, did not attend the forum.

Evans promise to create jobs through infrastructure projects earned the confidence of two-thirds of the Members of the Democrats of Napa Valley who voted to give her its endorsement. Evans asked the group to look to her record with the 7th Assembly District to judge how she'd approach a state senate seat.

“I worked with congressman (Mike) Thompson on a St. Helena project that created jobs and saved homes. The Napa River flood control project meant hundreds of jobs for Napa County, Evans said.

Sanders, former mayor of Sonoma, came in second with 11 votes, five less than those cast for Evans in the endorsement vote. Sanders said her staffing company has created 3,800 jobs in Napa, Solano and Sonoma counties.

“The state's number one revenue source is income tax,” Sanders said.

“I'm a small business owner and I'm in the business of facilitating job creation.”

Lynch said cuts to government workers' pensions and pay were at the heart of his plan to stem job loss.

Lynch proposed starting with graduated salary-based pay cuts and reducing pension payouts.

“We can't continue with massive, unfunded obligations that are robbing us of our funds," Lynch said of current pension plans.

The Guerneville general contractor didn't win the endorsement vote of any of the democrats who came out Thursday night, but he did win applause as he listed a left-leaning agenda to reduce the prison population and legalize marijuana.

Evans, who spoke after Lynch, challenged the 30-year Guerneville resident's plan to address the state's budget deficit.

“You could fire every state employee, and you couldn't close this budget gap,” Evans said.

Candidates answered multiple questions about partisan collaboration, like one that came from Matt Pope, a Napa County planning commissioner, when he asked Sanders how she'd deal with an impasse between Republicans and Democrats in Sacramento.

“We have to find common ground, find incentives. Let's say you have to raise a tax, what do you need from the biz community to help them move forward?” Sanders said.

In response to a similar question, Evans said she fought Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposed cuts by inviting public comment for the first time.

“Judge me by what I've done. I opened (the budget hearings) up to everyone in the state of California,” Evans said.

 

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